Barra Sweetnam is very concerned about sustainability and sells as much of his produce as possible with minimal packaging. He has also always been one for championing local growers and has continued to do this in his latest two ventures.
Dripsey Castle in Cork is situated on 110 acres of land in County Cork. Most of the land is traditional woodlands, but they have recently started growing organic vegetables on the land.
"Dripsey Castle grows the vegetables and we sell them," explains Barra Sweetnam from AllFresh Wholesale. "There are no big volumes at the moment, but we have a few different organic products such as baby carrots, onions, garlic, green courgettes, and potatoes. We are expecting to get tomatoes soon too, this is great as there are not many commercial tomato growers in Ireland. It has always been our ethos to support local growers and to reduce air miles."
"Our buyers for these organic products are mainly hotels and restaurants. With this niche product, we might reach more artisan retailers and restaurants who, at the moment, buy directly from the grower. The chefs like to have local produce on the menus and often name the grower on the menu so that customers know where it was grown. It is all seasonal produce, and unlike the produce which we import, we will not have a consistent supply."
This is a new concept for Barra, but he is prepared to give it a go. "It won't suit some of the bigger hotels who have a fixed menu, but the smaller ones can usually adapt their menus to what is available or offer specials. This organic produce is going to be more expensive, perhaps 20-30% roughly, but we do have customers who are willing to pay this."
Another new partnership for AllFresh Wholesale is with Irish grower, Horizon Farms, who grow baby mixed leaves. "I've known Colm from Horizon for years; in fact, we kind of compete with each other. By working together, we can increase the volumes and sell to a wider market. The mixed leaves will again be more expensive than those imported from countries such a Italy."
For more information:
Barra Sweetnam
Allfresh Wholesale
Tel: +353 21 4510526
[email protected]
www.allfresh.ie