The NI Food & Drink Pavilion Returns
We’re delighted that our NI Food & Drink Pavilion is returning to the 153rd Balmoral Show and this year it is set to wow crowds with over 100 local food and drink companies and three Theatre Kitchens.
Supported by the Northern Ireland Regional Food Programme, and Tourism NI, the Pavilion will tantalise your taste buds, with delicious and original food and drink on offer – from award-winning cheese to mouth-watering brownies! The Pavilion includes a number of new and innovative businesses that started during the pandemic with emerging trends in sustainability, health and food tourism:
| COMPANY: | WHAT’S ON OFFER: |
| Papas Mineral Co | Artisan award-winning speciality cordials blended by hand. |
| The Brownie Barn | The home of all things sweet – Brownies, cookies & award-winning caramel sauce. |
| Long Meadow Cider | Third generation family run business producing a range of craft ciders, apple juice and apple cider vinegar. |
| White’s Oats | Located in the heart of Co. Armagh, White’s Oats is Northern Ireland’s most sustainable breakfast producer, having milled oats in Tandragee for over 180 years. |
| Burren Balsamics | Multi award-winning artisan producer of infused dark and white balsamic vinegars, and premium pantry items. |
| Milgro | Northern Ireland’s only commercial onion grower who make exceedingly good Crispy onions. |
| Betty’s Ice-Cream | New business venture by Bethany Boyd creating luxurious, smooth, scoopable ice-cream in a variety of flavours. |
| Irish Black Butter | Portrush producer specialising in their signature award-winning Irish Black Butter apple conserve for home users. Decidedly different and versatile conserve to transform and enhance your food and drink. |
| Symphonia Spirits | Multi-award winning distillery based in the Orchard of Ireland, producing delicious spirits showcasing local produce. |
| Mid and East Antrim Food and Drink Network | Taste and See local delights from an area with a passion for food and an appetite for business. |
| Country Kitchen | Located in Co. Armagh, Avondale Foods is the home of Country Kitchen fresh soups, coleslaw and potato salads, as well as a new range of pasta and cous cous side salads. |
| Sea Source | Membership organisation owned by fishermen of Northern Ireland who have been catching, landing and selling their world class seafood in Kilkeel since 1853. Our mission is to supply the highest quality, world class and sustainable seafood from our local Northern Ireland fishermen. |
| Glens of Antrim Crisps | Expertly hand-cooked in the heart of the Glens of Antrim, Cushendall. Bold, delicious and locally made flavours coat Northern Irish spuds delivering on award winning taste and the perfect crunch. |
| Dundarave Estate | Preserves homemade by the Estates resident chef using only the finest local ingredients. |
| The Shed | This place is a real treasure trove, nestled in the countryside on the outskirts of Moira with a seasonal local menu worth checking out. |
| Natural Umber | A deliciously different organic apple cider vinegar. Made to retain a sweet apple flavour, try adding it to a glass of water or in your favourite recipes. |
| Scotts Crispy Onions | A fast and hassle free way for you to add a restaurant style topping or side to your meals and snacks at home. Ready in as little as 30 seconds with 6 mouth-watering flavours to choose from. |
| FareShare NI | FareShare NI is a project of Homeless Connect and is part of the wider FareShare UK network of charitable food redistributors. |
| Linwoods Health Foods | Linwoods Health Foods aims to make it easy for everyone to access nutrient-rich seeds, fruits and nuts which are full of natural plant goodness. |
| Island Dairies | Small family run business based just outside Dromore, Co Down who process their own milk on site. Choose from milk, milkshakes, fresh cream and orange juice. |
| Gilfresh Produce | Established by the Gilpin Family over 50 years ago Gilfresh is dedicated to the growing, packing, processing and distribution of a wide range of core and prepared vegetables. |
| Craig Foods | For over 50 years now, Craig Foods has been a leading supplier of baked goods in Northern Ireland with an enviable reputation for the quality of its products and reliability of its service. |
| Thompson’s Tea | Fourth-generation family business born and blended in Belfast since 1896. A local tea we all know and love! |
| Food Heartland | With over 870 award-winning local producers the council area of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon has become firmly established as the Food Heartland of Northern Ireland. |
| Nature Friendly Farming Network | Focused on uniting farmers from all sectors and backgrounds to manage land in ways that deliver benefits for wildlife and the environment, at the same time as growing healthy food and having profitable farm businesses. |
| Hellbent | Bringing a South African flavour wave to the UK and Ireland driven by their passion for authentic food and drink. |
| Granny Shaws Fudge Factory | Granny Shaws Fudge Factory and Confections are based in Broughshane Co Antrim, using old Victorian recipes they manufacture by hand a range of nostalgic confections from Nut Brittles to Honeycombs and Vanilla Fudges to Whiskey Tablet. |
| Hotties Chocolate | Small batch, luxury hot chocolate company on a mission to make the world’s best hot chocolate while spreading joy one cup at a time. |
| Erin Grove Preserves | Expect a multi-award winning range of preserves, chutneys and cheese accompaniments that are simply bursting with flavour! |
| Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council | An area of high quality and bespoke food, drink and immersive tourism experiences featuring premium local products and excellent service delivery. |
| Kennedy Bacon | Artisanal award-winning bacon dry cured on Kennedy’s farm in Glenhordial in the Hills above Omagh. |
| The Hatch | Multi award winning street food specialising in grass fed smashed beef burgers using local Mourne shorthorn beef. |
| Glastry Farm | An on-farm processor of dessert ice-creams and sorbets for the food service sector, retail trade and ice-cream parlours. |
| Finnebrogue Artisan | Finnebrogue is one of the UKs leading artisan food producers. A family-owned business based in Downpatrick, Northern Ireland, they have made their name producing premium sausages, venison, bacon, ham wagyu beef and plant-based products. |
| Moy Park | Recognised as Ireland’s number one poultry brand, their range of high-quality branded chicken products includes fresh chicken, added value, breaded and a range of ready to eat options. |
| The Consumer Council | The Consumer Council’s principal statutory duty is to promote and safeguard the interests of consumers in Northern Ireland. They have specific statutory duties in relation to energy, postal services, transport, private car parking and water and sewerage. |
| Simply Irresistible | Simply Irresistible Catering have diversified from ‘their fields to your fork’. Their creativity, innovation and traceability have led them along the way, providing locally sourced sustainable wholesome food, rich with taste & flavours, freshly made for you! |
| The Fluffy Meringue | Bakers and producers of pavlovas and flavoured meringues in several different flavours all made in their own bakery |
| BoI Open Farm Weekend | This years Bank of Ireland Open Farm Weekend is making a welcome return back on farms on Friday 17 June to Sunday 19 June 2022 and planning a packed schedule of activities to showcase Northern Ireland food and farming at its best. |
| Trussell Trust | Aiming to create a NI without the need for food banks. They support a network of 21 local food banks and together we provide emergency food and support to people locked in poverty, and campaign for change to end the need for food banks in N. Ireland. |
| Lough Neagh Fishermen’s Co-Operative Society Ltd | Lough Neagh is a Wild Freshwater Fishery , where they are known for the infamous Lough Neagh Eels alongside top quality Pollan, Perch & Trout. |
| Hinch Distillery | At Hinch, set amongst County Downs rolling green drumlin hills, they have created a distillery that has aspirations well beyond ‘the ordinary’, ambitions to be creative well beyond ‘the easily achieved’. |
| The Morelli Pod | Morelli’s believe that lrish Dairy produce is the best in the world, hence the reason why they use only lrish Dairy products in our recipes. By combining flavourings from some of Italy’s most prestigious flavour houses and the finest inclusions and chocolates from right across the world they believe that their ice cream just may be some of the finest that you’ll ever taste! |
| Taste Ards & North Down | Promoting food experiences and festivals alongside Ards and North Down’s producers and restaurants |
| Kin & Folk | Husband & Wife creating small batch artisan treats , bakes & bread |
| Ke Nako Biltong | A multi award winning biltong producer, based in Co. Antrim. They use organically reared dairy cull cow as the base ingredient for their delicious products. |
| The Big Lunch | #TheBigLunch vote for a party that brings people together. Order your free Big Lunch pack and let’s have something to look forward to! |
| Savour Visit Mourne | Savour Visit Mourne integrates local authentic food and drink producers with tourism providers to create saleable visitor experiences that showcase the exemplary food and drink offering within the Visit Mourne destination. |
| Corndale Farm Charcuterie | Corndale Farm produces premium Northern Irish charcuterie products for both retail and foodservice. They produce Their range of cured meats from our own free range, rare breed pigs. Their range includes, Chorizo, Salami, ‘Nduja, Beer Sticks, Coppa, Lomo & Bresaola. |
| The Belfast Coffee Co | The Belfast Coffee Co is a family coffee business that roasts smooth full-bodied coffee. |
| Crawfords Rock Seaweed | Traditionally our ancestors foraged the beach for seaweeds they used this as a mineral boost after the first frosts – Today Crawfords relive this tradition in a very modern. |
| Green Fingers Family | Artisan, multi-award-winning food production business based in Larne, producing 100% natural, gluten-free & refined sugar-free granolas, raw energy balls, traybakes & desserts. |
| Giants Basalt Rock Gin | Created a stones throw from the Giants Causeway, Giants Basalt Rock Gin is the epitome of controlled chaos. They take basalt purified water from their 600ft well, use the most advanced distilling technology and apply molecular-level precision to create an unparalleled three-dimensional gin. |
Throughout Show days there will be three Theatre Kitchens cooking up a storm. The Tesco Theatre Kitchen will focus on cooking on a budget using local ingredients, the Tourism NI Kitchen will showcase some of Northern Ireland’s top food and drink experiences, and the Moy Park Kitchen will focus on all that is chicken.
There’ll be a tremendous atmosphere in the pavilion once again. The pavilion is a must visit experience to find out what is happening in the world of food and drink and to see our talented food and drink industry show off the latest innovations. Make sure to visit the Balmoral Park from 11th – 14th May where the sold-out pavilion is set to host the biggest celebration of the outstanding tastes and rich flavours from local artisan companies across the province.
The Balmoral Show in partnership with Ulster Bank, Northern Ireland’s largest agri-food event will take place from Wednesday 11th May to Saturday 14th May 2022 at Balmoral Park, Lisburn. All tickets must be purchased online at by clicking here. Tickets will not be available on the gate.
