This week on Beat, we have €150 in cash to give away with O'Shea Farms to mark National Potato Day!
They want you to stay informed on our potato industry which is undergoing seismic change in the wake of Brexit.
Across the South East, farmers have been upskilling with the help of O'Shea Farms and Meadowfresh Foods to increase quality and yield in preparation to boost supply for the Irish fast food and hospitality industry who are eager to replace British chipping potatoes with their Irish counterparts.
The advantages of Irish grown, sustainable potatoes are obvious. Not only are they perfectly suited for chipping, but Irish potatoes don't pick up extended transport costs when sold here in Ireland. The smaller travel distance required from farm to fork also means that Irish potatoes have a lower carbon footprint than imported ones.
O'Shea Farms and Meadowfresh Foods plan to market approximately 2,500 tonnes of chipping variety potatoes across 2021 and 2022 rising to 5000 tonnes by 2023 and 2024. These will be packed and sold directly and indirectly to chip shops and the hospitality sector.
Speaking to Beat, an O'Shea farms representative said: “We aim to become the first dedicated fresh chipping potato packer and distributor in Ireland. We are in the unique position of having multiple outlets for our potatoes, ensuring that we can use 100% of the crop grown by our Bord Bia Approved farmers."
They continued: "We can promise continuity of supply through our ability to professionally store the crop through the winter and spring."
To discover more about O'Shea's Irish potatoes, tap here.
Photo by Georgiana Mirela from Pexels
