Pictured (from left): Pat Whelan, owner, James Whelan Butchers
and Willie Phelan (right), FBD.
| Tipp for the Top- FBD Retail Awards Having their own farm, abattoir and shop to sell beef allows staff at Small South Store winner James Whelan Butchers to give people that vital element of trust, reports Caroline Allen James Whelan Butchers is a family firm that has been in business for more that 45 years, and five generations of the Whelan family have bred Aberdeen Angus and Hereford beef. Today the company allies that experience with the most advanced contemporary technologies, both on its farm and in its shop in Clonmel. “ Our cattle all carry individual ‘passports’ throughout processing, and all our work is accomplished to the most exacting standards from our own abattoir at the family farm through to the shop, “says owner Pat Whelan. “Having our own farm, abattoir and shop to sell our beef allows us to give people that essential element of trust that every consumer requires when they buy meat today, but we try to take this further and give the best possible taste along with that element of trust”, Pat Whelan adds. “To this end, we dry age our beef, ie we use the traditional method of developing flavour, and we do not use the ‘wet ageing’ technique that is now universal. Our technique is to keep our beef in a temperature-controlled ageing chamber. Gradually, as the beef looses moistures, it develops flavour and becomes more and more tender, The result is beef with a natural sweetness, a deep red colour and superb cooking and eating qualities. James Whelan Butchers has recently launched its website www.jameswhelanbutchers.com This service offers an overnight refrigerated delivery of fresh meat to your home. “Whether you live in north Donegal or south-east Wexford we can offer you a full range of our products, including beef, pork, lamb, bacon and poultry,” says Pat Whelan “ Customers spending more than €100 may avail of free delivery. This is a new and innovative service, that first of its kind to be launched in Ireland, and has recently received the Enterprise of the Year Award 2005” James Whelan Butchers has received very favourable reviews from Ireland and the UK. Esteemed food writer John McKenna, author of Bridgestone GOOD FOOD GUIDE, has said it is “the best butchers in Ireland”. The company has also featured in the Rick Stein’s Food Heroes series on BBC 2 and the Sunday Independents Brendan O’Connor has said its beef is “simply Superb”. Being short listed for the FBD CREST Awards provides a national platform for James Whelan Butchers to reach its potential target audience, he says. “The soft rain and lush pasture of Tipperary gives a unique flavour to our beef something we are very proud of, Other countries pride themselves on their special beef bred in specific areas, and we like to think that our local climate, our environment and our use of traditional processes allows us to produce a food that is unique to its place”. |
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Tel 052 - 26247 Fax. 052 - 29785
info@jameswhelanbutchers.com