Donegal seafood business Atlantic Treasures is a finalist in SFA National Small Business Awards which take place this Friday, 30 April. The annual awards celebrate excellence, achievement and innovation, and recognise the vital contribution of the small business sector to Irish industry.
Based in the popular fishing port in Killybegs, Atlantic Treasures is a family-run business and is the only finalist from Donegal representing the county in two categories, Food and Drink and Sustainability.
Speaking about the upcoming SFA awards, Michael O’Donnell who is the business development and marketing manager said: “It’s a great honour to be recognised for all our hard work, particularly during these last fourteen months. To be shortlisted in one category was brilliant, but to make the cut in two was amazing. For us, the real icing is to be representing Donegal on a national level and we’re all looking forward to the virtual awards on Friday afternoon. We have only our dedicated team to thank for getting us to where we are today.”
Launched in 2010, Atlantic Treasures produces an award-winning range of smoked mackerel that come in five different flavours. The Irish seafood business also makes a Nordic style marinated herring and sliced smoked salmon range and are working on new product developments to bring to the market later this year. As well as being stocked in Dunnes Stores, Tesco, Aldi, Supervalu and other national independent retailers, the Donegal business also has a strong retail and food service market in the UAE and Singapore with plans to expand into the European market in 2022.
O’Donnell says Atlantic Treasures is passionate about creating value added products to meet new customer demands: “Our ethos is to bring seafood into the 21st century with different glazes and spices to help our customers experience new tastes and enjoy quality fish in a new way. We pride ourselves on being a premier smoker for the Irish market, while providing customers with quality products supported by an excellent brand and family story. Our product range is premium and innovative, and products are constantly being added and updated to ensure we keep up with market demands and increase our market share year on year.”
Sustainability
Atlantic Treasures also places a big focus on sustainability and in January 2021 completed its own 850kw wind turbine on site, which produces more electricity than the company requires per year.
“Our parent company, Island Seafoods, has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to sustainability and was one of the first pelagic processers to be Origin Green certified, so it was natural for sustainability to be a core part of our business activities. In January 2021, we completed our own 850kw wind turbine on site, which sees us produce more electricity than we can consume per year, which in turn reduces our carbon footprint and takes us a step closer to being carbon neutral. All our products are produced using renewable energy which gives confidence to our customers. Over the years we have also worked towards improving the efficiencies within the plant and reducing the energy and water requirements of the business. As part of this process, we developed a Green Team who meet regularly to identify, develop, implement, and monitor environmentally driven initiatives. We want to be able to showcase our journey of sustainability to other food manufacturers and help lead the way in carbon reduction and green house emission reduction throughout Ireland,” O’Donnell finished.
For more information on Atlantic Treasures and their story visit www.atlantictreasures.ie.
Recent Comments