Karri Kitchen cooks up £450k deal with Musgrave NI

With an expected deal value of £450,000, the healthy ready meal range is currently stocked in more than 40 stores across Musgrave’s portfolio with plans to roll out across more stores in the coming months.

Established in 2018, Karri Kitchen combines founder, Shera McAloran’s Indonesian heritage with locally sourced ingredients to recreate flavoursome recipes that have been passed through generations of her family.

Starting out as a one-person operation in a home kitchen, the company has now expanded to employ 25 people at a purpose built site in Craigavon.

The company has been awarded several accolades for its products including Best Poultry Ready Meal in Ireland for its mango chicken curry and a Healthy Product Innovation Award at the Irish Food Awards.

The meals were also a hit at this year’s NI Food and Drink Awards winning the Healthier Product Innovation Award and highly commended in the Small Company Award.

Julie Cherry, trading director at Musgrave Northern Ireland, said: “Karri Kitchen is an innovative local supplier and we are delighted to expand our partnership with them.

"With locally sourced, quality ingredients coupled with aromatic and bold flavours, the range of eight meals has already impressed judges of prestigious food awards as well as our customers. As the company goes from strength to strength it is primed for growth in the buoyant healthy ready meal market.

“As a key part of Musgrave’s ethos, we are always seeking quality local suppliers to work with and spend £160m on food and drink annually. We work with more than 3,000 local farmers, partner with 150 local suppliers and stock 3,500 plus local products across our stores.”

Shera McAloran, founder of Karri Kitchen, added: “Karri Kitchen is the reflection of my Indonesian heritage, my varied experience in the food industry, as well as my great passion for healthy and nutritious food.

"We use locally sourced ingredients to create delicious, healthy and convenient meals and we’re delighted that consumers across NI have embraced the South East Asian flavours. As the company continues to grow, we’re excited to extend our partnership with Musgrave NI as they stock our products in more of their stores.”