As a sheep farmer and sales manager for Ring of Kerry Quality Lamb, Denis Carroll’s dream is that, one day, their brand will be known worldwide.
“If you had read about us in New York, when you would come into Kerry, you would expect that that is what you would get on the menu,” he says. “Not lamb, not Kerry lamb, but Ring of Kerry lamb.”
Denis runs a sheep and dairy enterprise outside Killarney with his son Shane, but the 18 members of Ring of Kerry Quality Lamb farm all along the world-famous route, like Patrick Moran (pictured here in Waterville).
Denis explains how the brand was set up in 2009 in response to frustration over factory prices.
“Lamb was making about €3.60/kg in the factories at that stage and the figures showed that the farmgate price that the farmers needed was €5/kg, so we decided that we would try to set up a group and that was a benchmark,” says Denis.
Established with the support of South Kerry Development Partnership, Teagasc, Bord Bia and the local enterprise board, it was imperative that the group was run fairly; for example, a board was appointed in line with co-operative rules.
Quality control and consistency were also key: lambs are mainly grass-fed, castrated at birth and hung for seven days before processing at a local abattoir in Fossa.
“If you present a lamb to the group and it’s not up to the standard, we return that lamb to you,” says Denis. “That to me is the ultimate in quality control and it’s our butcher is the arbitrator there.”
The group aims to manage their flocks to have lamb year-round, though demand is greatest May-September at peak tourist season, with 80% of sales to hotels and restaurants, and the remainder to customers who buy a lamb cut to order for the freezer.
And while there have been many lessons, Denis believes the group has succeeded in establishing a premium product.
Meeting challenges
That said, he does not shy away from the challenges; mainly that due to the rise in the price of lamb on the open market, it’s becoming harder to compete with the prices that factories are now offering farmers.
“If we don’t address that challenge properly within our group, we’re not going to be relevant to our members,” says Denis.
Moreover, due to their size, factories can also sell to customers at a lower price. Therefore, to become more sustainable, Ring of Kerry Quality Lamb needs greater scale. Denis firmly believes this could be readily met by the hotel industry within the county; especially with the boost from the Wild Atlantic Way.
“It’s not too much to expect that if I go into a hotel on the Wild Atlantic Way and I see lamb on the menu that it would be local lamb; and what we would love is if it would be our lamb,” says Denis, explaining that while they have very supportive customers, more could come on board.
Working together
Again, Denis acknowledges the challenges: chefs are busy and many hotels have their buying ruled by the bottom line.
However, he believes it is not just about putting a local product on the plate, but supporting the farmers who are guardians of the local landscape that tourism depends on.
“I’m not a mountain farmer, but I have fierce respect for mountain farmers for the terrain they’re farming. It’s not the Golden Vale and believe me, it’s not lucrative, but they do it because they love it and that is being totally taken for granted,” he says.
“There aren’t that many young men walking the mountains gathering sheep anymore … roll this on 10 years and we’re going to have a problem.”
He stresses, however, that the solution is “not rocket science”.
“If everybody pulls together, it wouldn’t take a lot to make these systems viable,” he says.
“It’s just about supporting each other and we have a unique product down here and we have a unique tourism product as well and why not enhance it with our food?
“To me, it’s a no-brainer.”
Ring of Kerry Quality Lamb is not the only product the county can be proud of. There is a vibrant food and drink scene, with brands including Béal organic cheese, Annascaul black pudding, Dingle Distillery, Valentia Farm ice-cream and Skelligs chocolate, along with hotels, restaurants, shops, cookery schools, farmers’ markets, food festivals and unique experiences providing a genuine flavour of local life.
And working to tie these strands together is Taste Kerry: an organisation that promotes food and drink in Kerry. As well as supporting food tourism in the Kingdom, Taste Kerry brings together all aspects of the food industry to encourage inter-county trade with initiatives like a producers directory.
For a member list as well as the “food experience” map and app, visit tastekerry.ie.
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