​Major sales boost and contract for Ballylisk premium cheese specialist

Ballylisk, a maker of triple cream cheeses from milk sourced from its own dairy farm at Tandragee, has secured business with Henderson Foodservice in Newtownabbey, the leading local food supplier to hundreds of hospitality outlets here and in many parts of the Republic especially around Dublin.

A delighted Mark Wright, a founder and managing director of the farm based business, explains: “This is an immensely important distribution and marketing deal for us as we seek to grow sales to the hospitality sector across the island.

“We were thrilled when Henderson Foodservice, such an influential business in the industry here, approached us about becoming a supplier. They had been following our success and enjoyed our cheeses. It is a marvellous boost for our small business because it offers us a massive marketing opportunity in Ireland to develop sales in this important sector.”

Ballylisk’s first triple cream is the award-winning Triple Rose, which Mark describes as “a circular, white mould, single herd, full–flavoured cheese” is made from pasteurised cow’s milk with added cream. The company also produces smoked, blue and Armagh cider apple washed triple cream varieties which have won praise from cheese lovers here and in Britain. It has an exciting new cheese currently under development.

The artisan company’s original Triple Rose product, a UK Great Taste winner, was named the best cheese in Northern Ireland at the UK Virtual Cheese Awards 2022. The Virtual Cheese Award was the latest in a host of endorsements for the Armagh cheese since the launch of the brand in 2016.

Ballylisk cheese is hand made in a purpose–built facility at Portadown, close to the family farm. The family firm was assisted in the development of the cheeses by experts at Loughry College Food Technology Centre of the College of Agriculture, Food and Farm Enterprise, near Cookstown in Co Tyrone.

The Wright family dairy farm in Ballylisk, near Tandragee, spans more than two hundred acres. There are a further two hundred acres which are rented, meaning more than enough space to accommodate the hundreds of cattle and to grow the crops which make up part of their diet. The farm is now as self–sufficient as possible.

Mark, who set up the cheese business with late brother Dean, continues: “We were thrilled to receive this important recognition. It is a tremendous endorsement of the quality and taste of our Triple Rose cheese. The award will be enormously beneficial to our marketing endeavours as we seek to build further sales especially in GB and the Republic, our most important external markets.”

The initial Triple Rose cheese was developed by the company with help from the Food Technology Centre at the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise at Loughry, near Cookstown and was launched at the Balmoral Show in 2018, winning the ‘Best New Product’ award.

The soft, triple cream cheese also won two Gold Stars in the 2019 Great Taste Awards and was a finalist in the 2018 Great British Cheese Awards. It has also proved popular with judges at the Blas na hEireann Awards, the Irish National Food Awards, which are held at Dingle in Co Kerry every October.

Henderson Foodservice is now marketing Ballylisk’s soft brie and smoked brie to its network of customers especially in Northern Ireland. Henderson Foodservice is a leading supplier to the catering industry in Ireland.

The company, part of the Henderson Group, sources and supplies a range of over 6,500 products to 4,500 customers across 11 sectors including hotels, public sector offices and hospitals.

The company has won numerous awards and accolades and has expanded significantly. The in-house team of over 70 sales and telesales staff co-ordinate deliveries six days a week from four Northern Ireland distribution centres.

The Henderson Group has a longstanding commitment to source local food and drink for its wholesale, retail and foodservice operations.

Henderson Wholesale, another part of the group, was recently recognised by Grocer magazine with a gold award for excellence. The group targeted a 4.2% rise in wholesale purchases, and delivered more than double that gain at 8.6%. It also smashed its goal to grow retail sales by 4.2% – they

rose 6.4%