Lisburn’s the Sea Source counter is probably the first in-store fish outlet in a NI farm shop

A unique business collaboration will enable shoppers in the Lisburn area to enjoy the taste and health benefits of fresh fish and seafood shortly after landing by trawlers at Kilkeel and other harbours along the Co Down coastline.

Kilkeel-based Sea Source has hooked up with the popular Ashvale Farm Shop and Tea Rooms, located outside Lisburn, to provide an extensive fresh fish and seafood counter for shoppers.

The Sea Source counter, which is staffed by experienced fishermen, is probably the first in-store fish outlet in a NI farm shop.

The arrangement with Ashvale, which opened recently following an extensive renovation after a devastating fire in a storeroom, is an important stage in Sea Source’s strategic focus on increasing access here for local people to fresh fish from trawlers at Kilkeel, Annalong, Portavogie and Ardglass.

The new counter follows the opening of a Sea Source fishmongers in Kilkeel, NI’s biggest fishing harbour, before the coronavirus pandemic. Sea Source’s Kathryn Graham explains: “Ashvale’s previous fish supplier had sold from a van outside of the shop and had decided to stop supplying and close that end of its business.

“We were then recommended to Ashvale as part of their re-opening of the farm shop, which led to a successful meeting with the proprietors. We set up and staffed the counter with our own people who are able to advise shoppers about how to choose and prepare fish. We also provide original recipes for meals using fish and seafood. It’s going really well.”

It’s an encouraging development for the industry because few – if any- farm shops and delis here offer fresh fish and seafood in-house.

Sea Source, NI’s leading fish and seafood producers’ organisation, is catching the healthy food wave by expanding its own retail operations to enable more consumers here to access fresh, tasty and nutritious fish and seafood. The approach reflects market research showing that consumers are increasingly recognising that fresh fish is healthy, nutritious and tasty.

The company’s dedicated fish and seafood shop in Kilkeel has been an outstanding success and now attracts shoppers from the Mournes and further afield for a wide variety of freshly landed fish and seafood.

“This success has encouraged us to move ahead with plans to make catches from our local fishing trawlers readily available to many more people. We’ve looked at a number of options and are delighted with this arrangement with Ashvale, one of the most popular and successful farm shops,” continues Sea Source chief executive Alan McCulla.

“Sea Source is all about developing opportunities for fishing families here in NI. We saw the growing demand for healthy and nutritious local foods as an opportunity to reach out to consumers by setting up our own fishmongers.”

Ashvale, originally opened in November 2013, has been extensively refurbished and reopened recently following the fire. In addition to fresh products from Sea Source, the farm shop offers a comprehensive range of local produce. The family-owned business, furthermore, has a popular restaurant with a menu of freshly cooked meals and snacks.

While Sea Source has diversified into a range of functions including retailing, it remains, at its core, a producers’ organisation, dedicated to promoting the fishing industry and ensuring that fishermen along the Down coast are prepared to embrace all the opportunities which exist in making a livelihood from the sea.

Established as the Anglo-North Irish Fish Producers’ Organisation (ANIFPO) in 1984 and subsequently rebranded as Sea Source, the company catches, processes and markets fish and shellfish products, reducing costs and maximising the financial return to local fishermen and the coastal community centred on Kilkeel.

Members harvest superb quality seafood from the waters around the UK and Ireland. Catches range from mackerel, herring and other oily fish landed by the biggest trawlers in the local fleet; through lobster and crab from small inshore potting vessels; to langoustines or Dublin Bay Prawns, which are landed alongside a range of white fish such as cod and haddock.

The membership is supported by a professional and experienced team of employees, including marketers and innovation experts, who ensure the needs of members are met. The company also supplies foodservice operations in NI.

Sea Source is also committed to promoting sustainable fishing methods and is involved in a variety of projects including the Seafish Responsible Fishing Scheme and Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification for Northern Ireland’s pelagic catches of herring and mackerel species.