Kettyle’s premium beef from Fermanagh selected by Tesco Ireland for top stores

Kettyle is a multi-award-winning producer of premium beef products aged in a unique salt moss chambers developed by Maurice Kettyle, the company’s founder. He is among the most successful and respected entrepreneurs within the Irish farming and

beef processing sectors.

The Fermanagh company, which is supporting the Tesco deal with a major in-store promotional campaign to drive sales, is now part of the ABP Group, Ireland’s biggest and most successful processor of a range of grass fed meats from Irish farms. ABP also has other successful processing operations in Northern Ireland including Linden Foods in Dungannon.

Tesco Ireland has listed: Salt Moss Dry Aged Fillet Steak; Salt Moss Dry Aged Ribeye Steak; Salt Moss Dry Aged Striploin Steak; Salt Moss Dry Aged Sirloin Steak; and Dry Aged Burgers.

The products are on sale initially in 22 major stores in key centres such as Dublin and Cork. Tesco has been operating in the Republic for over 25 years and now has a network of around 170 supermarkets in cities and towns across the country.

The quality meat is 100% sourced from Irish, Bord Bia approved farms. Ireland is known worldwide for its premium quality, grass fed beef, which last month gained EU Protected Name status, an important accreditation which also includes beef processors in Northern Ireland like Kettyle Irish Foods.

The company works with grass-reared Aberdeen Angus, Hereford and Dexter breeds for greater consistency in the quality and tenderness of meat and liaises, especially in terms of diet and husbandry, with dozens of farmers in Northern Ireland and the Republic.

Grass-reared beef is nutrient-rich with health benefits including fewer calories, greater Omega 3, vitamin A and E and micronutrients, all of which emanate from the animals living a healthy life and being free to roam lush pastures.

Kettyle’s team of master butchers carefully select each animal and hand cut with unique specialisation. The butchers’ knowledge, along with the company’s processes, always deliver supreme tenderness that carries through to an exquisitely tender eating experience.

The enterprising company, a pioneer of dry aged beef, was established in 2004, knowing it needed to do something even better in a challenging marketplace to win sales. So, Maurice Kettyle created its own unique salt moss dry ageing chambers.

These chambers in Fermanagh plant house a wall of handcrafted salt bricks – using virgin organic Irish sea salt, held together by a natural binder – Irish organic sea weed (Carrageen) harvested from the rugged Atlantic shores.

“Over the years, our chambers have developed a unique culture and environment, providing a distinct flavour profile unique to Kettyle,” the company says.

The premium meat, which has been acclaimed for quality, tenderness and outstanding taste has won UK Great Taste Awards, Blas na hEireann Irish National Food Awards and World Steak Challenge awards, is hung naked in the chambers, allowing it to breathe.

“As the salt walls are hygroscopic (absorbs moisture), the moisture is drawn out of the meat, ensuring it becomes under stable control quicker than non-salt aged meat. Due to the high potassium levels in the salt walls, the dry culture within the chill is maintained and self-managed.

“Our salt moss process concentrates the flavour of the meat and almost renders the fat to a dry flakiness. This dry nature enables it to caramelise quickly in the pan, sealing and locking in the sweet yet nutty beefiness. Often our meat is described as beef of yesteryear, true to flavour with a depth that bursts on the palette.”

Maurice Kettyle, who grew up on the family beef farm in Fermanagh and remains an integral part of the local farming community, is the pioneer in dry-ageing beef in caves lined with bricks of Irish salt moss for unique taste and texture

In addition to featuring on the menus of high-end restaurants in the UK, Ireland, other parts of Europe and the Middle East, steaks from Kettyle Irish Foods are in the chillers of major food retailers like Tesco. It also developed a unique beef burger in collaboration with Guinness, the global stout brewer.

The deal with Tesco Ireland follows a breakthrough with the retailer’s operation here last year for a range of dry-aged beef cuts from the respected Fermanagh operation as it prepares to celebrate 20 successful years in business.