Irish Organic Mill credits LEO Monaghan with its success to date...

Organic milling company credits LEO Monaghan with its success to date and encourages other start-ups to contact them too!

 

Irish Organic Mill 1Monaghan farmers creating a name for producing organic milled flour say they do not think their business would have got off the ground without the support of LEO Monaghan.

Irish Organic Mill was started by Micheál Rafferty and Mark Gillanders who wanted to mill the organic wheat growing on their farms in county Monaghan.

They hope their flour will replace some of the thousands of tonnes of flour imported into Ireland every year.

Micheál said, “we are two local organic farmers, and we grow certified organic milling wheat at both of our farms. The wheat is taken to the mill where it is cleaned and further processed and milled into Irish organic flour.’

Mark said, ‘We produce an artisan organic flour that is getting brilliant feedback from the bakeries throughout Ireland because of its unique taste and (because) bakers are able to work with it.’

Irish Organic Mill 2Micheál said, “LEO Monaghan provided us with a range of supports including training, a priming grant and the Food Business management Development programme.”

“I don’t think we would have been able to get the project off the ground without the assistance of LEO Monaghan. Their assistance and guidance and mentoring along the journey has hugely helped us to bring the produce to market,” he added.

He said, “we feel that LEO Monaghan are an integral partner for us as we continue to grow the business.”

Mark said, “not many are doing what we are doing. The demand for organic flour is really, really good and is growing in Ireland. We import so much organic flour onto the island of Ireland when we can be doing (growing) it here.”

Irish Organic Mill 3Micheál agreed saying, “when Irish bakers and Irish home bakers buy our products they are directly supporting Irish business and local organic farmers and are essentially reducing our reliance on imported flour.”

“Last year Ireland imported 283,000 tonnes of flour, that equates to 5.5 million kilos of flour per week imported into Ireland. I believe we provide a very strong alternative - locally grown and locally milled flour.”

They both encouraged local enterprises, even at the pre-start stage, “to make early contact with the LEO Monaghan and talk to them.”

Irish Organic Mill is located in the newly expanded Ballybay Food Hub opened last month by the Tanaiste Leo Varadkar and by local deputy and Minister for Social Protection, Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphries.