Food firm’s accelerated plans
FARRANFORE-BASED food firm Origin Clean Protein Bars has been selected to take part in the next round of ‘Food Works’, Ireland’s leading business accelerator programme for food and drink start-ups.
Run by Bord Bia, Enterprise Ireland and Teagasc over the last five years, the Food Works programme has worked with 76 food and drink companies to encourage innovative new product ideas, while supporting the growth of the sector on a global scale.
Founded by Niall Harty in 2017, Origin make a range of 100 per cent natural high-fibre protein bars, which are nutritionally developed with a plant-based prebiotic fibre which ensures a slow release energy.
The products are manufactured in a purpose-built production facility in Farranfore and the company is currently upscaling production capacity to meet demand in both domestic and international markets.
Founder Niall Harty said everyone at Origin is looking forward to what the programme will bring to the company.
“From the moment we decided to develop our brand, we knew that the Food Works programme was going to be for us because we had global ambition,” he said
“We knew we had a great product but we didn’t have the roadmap for how to take it there. The programme will help us to identify the routes to market to help us to get the product out there,” Mr Harty said.
Since 2012, Food Works has worked with 76 start-ups to develop scalable and export focussed business ideas. One i n three of the firms that have taken part have already achieved export success generating a combined €1.5 million in export sales in 2016 alone with sale in markets across four continents.