FOOD & DRINK
FRESH CUT FOOD SERVICES, 68 Moyle Road, Dublin Industrial
Estate, Glasnevin, Dublin 9. Tel: 01 8600500.
Adab
hand
Tappingintothemovementtowards
healthyeating,FreshCutFood
Serviceshasjustlaunchedanew
lineoftake-homefoodproducts,
preparedusingtop-quality,
additive-freeingredients
‘The handmade aspect is
what makes us unique.
We adhere to basic cooking
processes, rather than
automated highly-processed
alternatives’
Malgorzata Adamowicz and Dermot Skehan
A
FTER nearly four years in the business of sup- whichpreparedusbetterfortheretailbusiness.Onanongo- servicecompanies,FreshCutFoodServicesmanufactures
plying a range of gourmet food solutions, ingbasis,wehadtocompletecertaintasks,andthisallowed and supplies its own gourmet food solutions, she says.
mainly to the food services sector, Dublin- us develop good business practice with Musgrave.” “We are currently the only company in Ireland offering
based Fresh Cut Food Services anticipates a FruitandvegetableshavebeenintheSkehanfamilyfor this complete range, prepared fresh to order at our man-
move more towards retail ‘own-brand’ products. manyyears.FreshCutFoodServices’originsbeganin1981 ufacturing facility. For most products, there is a five-day
Asthedirectorofthecompany,LizSkehan—whoismar- whenDermotSkehanspottedanicheinthemarketforpre- shelf life and we have a 24- to 48-hour turnaround.”
riedtoownerandjointmanagingdirectorDermotSkehan paredvegetables,andsetup‘JustIn’,operatingfromaprem- The company distributes directly in the greater Dublin
—notes,therecessionaryclimatewillcreateademandfor ises on Richmond Road in Dublin’s Northside. area, but uses a variety of business partnerships else-
quality,‘over-the-counter’take-homemealsolutions,aspeo- Fromthere,hewentontooperatefromanumberofdis- where in the country — companies in similar businesses
ple become less inclined to go out to eat. tinct units around the capital, which produced wholesale that have distributors.
With this in mind, Freshcut Food Services is launching fruitandvegetables,fresh-cutfruitandhot-foodsolutions, Duetothecurrentemphasisonlifestyleandhealth,pre-
sixnewproductsunderitscustomers’ownbrandin2009: in addition to Just In. pared ready-made and ‘ready-to-go’ food solutions must
Fish Pie; Beef Stroganoff; Chilli Con Carne; Pasta Bake; “Wewerethefirstinthemarkettocaterforthedemand now have the very best-quality ingredients and eliminate
Chicken a la King; and Steak and Mushroom Pie. forcutfruitand,intheearlydays,therewereveryfewbusi- all additives and preservatives, Skehan maintains.
To date, Fresh Cut Food Services has been strong in the nesses preparing vegetables,” explains Liz Skehan. With this mind, Fresh Cut Food Services’ products are
food-servicesector,with85pcofitsbusinesscomingviathis “In2005,webroughteverythingtogetherintoapurpose- made using 100pc natural ingredients, plus it doesn’t
route.ItsuppliesMusgraveRetailPartnersandSuperquinn, built27,000sqftbuildinginDublinIndustrialEstate,sowe extendshelflifeinanywaybeyonditsnaturalcycle.
as well as the major hotel groups, airlines, health boards, couldfulfilallordersacrosstheboardfromonedestination.” “Webelieveproductdevelopmentiskeytoourbusiness
universities and hospitals. Nowadays,FreshCutFoodServices’keyproductsinclude andwecanrespondtotheever-changingtrendsinthefood
Last year, Fresh Cut Food Services completed ‘First Sale’, hand-cutpreparedfruitsalads,anextensiverangeofpre- marketplace. Anything that leaves our facility looks as if
a year-long mentoring programme in alliance with Enter- paredvegetables,andarangeofbespokehandmadegour- it was made at home,” says Dermot Skehan.
prise Ireland and sponsored by Musgrave Food Services. met pâtés, terrines, pies and quiches. In addition, the The company can deliver on this philosophy, thanks to
“This has allowed us an introduction to Musgrave company supplies a full range of wholesale fruit and veg- itsteamofdedicatedstaffofabout50,someofwhohave
through its SuperValu and Centra stores and has proven etables from its central unit. been with the company for the past 20 years.
highly successful for our range of handmade pies, SkehansaysFreshCutFoodServiceshasexperiencedsuc- “When we moved to the new premises, most of the
quiches and hot dishes,” Skehan says. cessfulgrowthsince2005.Turnoverincreased40pctoreach employees came with us. We experience very little staff
“We gained access to expertise and went through the just over ¤7.1m last year. turnover. The premises is automated to a degree, but the
process that the marketing and retail people go through, Drivingthisgrowthisthefactthat,unlikeotherfood handmade aspect is what makes us unique,” he notes.
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