2022 marks 30 years of Organico. 

When Hannah and Rachel’s dad, Alan, started a small health food shop called Essential Foods back in 1992, no one in the family expected it to grow into what it’s become today. 

But 30 years later, here we are 

And we owe a lot to the many incredible producers and people that have nurtured our journey along the way. 

For our 30th, we wanted to celebrate those people. To make sure they know Organico wouldn’t be Organico without them.

That weekend when we celebrated a BIG birthday

In early September, we threw a big birthday bash weekend and invited everyone to join in. 

It started with our Birthday Food Fair where anyone could come to sample foods and meet over 15 of our local producers.

The next day we held a staff party which brought together beloved faces of the past and present. (And with all the smallies running around… possibly future team members were there as well?)

Whether you were able to join us or not, we wanted to share pics from the weekend with you. Because you’re an important part of what keeps us going as well.  

Organico wouldn’t be Organico without you either. 

At our Birthday Food Fair we mingled with some of our lovely producers   

Tony Miller and Kristin Laubach

Kristin and Tony have been supplying us with gorgeous organic veg from Dunmanway since Hannah and Rachel were teenagers. 

Each season they bring us fresh produce that’s grown on a farm absolutely teeming with life and biodiversity.

 

Helen Ennis - Dunbeacon Pottery

Helen carefully and expertly makes beautiful pottery by hand at her studio in Durrus. 

They’re the type of pieces that catch the eye, then fit right in once you bring them home. Just like the Organico mug Helen makes specially for us. 

 

Steve Collins - PhyterBerry

Steve is one of our newest producers who has taken otherwise ‘hard-to-cultivate’ land and produced a successful crop of organic aronia berries. 

He turns the berries into a tart sugar-free juice that provides more polyphenols per serving than green tea. 

 

Geraldine and Johnny Lynch - Macroom Buffalo Cheese

Geraldine and Johnny bring us the tastiest mozzarella, feta and ricotta made from the milk of their free-range water buffalo in Macroom.

Seriously – their fresh buffalo mozzarella rivals anything you’ll taste in Italy. 

 

Kevin and Liz O'Donovan - Gloun Cross Dairy

Kevin and Liz bring us milk and cream that’s as fresh as it gets – straight from their farm to our shop. 

It’s non-homogenised, as milk is meant to be.

If you’re sharing with family, we encourage you to be the first to open the bottle so you’re the lucky duck who gets to spoon the cream from the top.

 

Anthony Creswell - Ummera Irish Smokehouse

When Anthony was young, his dad told him to get a job or he was off to the army. Thankfully for us, this set Anthony on a career path in fine foods.

Anthony’s organic smoked salmon is an utter luxury. Don’t neglect to treat yourself as soon as you can.  

 

Eli Tanner - WASi

Eli works with his partner, Claire O’Sullivan, here in Bantry to sustainably harvest seaweed and turn it into unexpectedly beautiful products.

Their seaweed pestos and chocolate and exquisite body care introduce a little bit of indulgence into the everyday.

 

Anna Snook O’Carroll - Valentia Island Vermouth

When Anna and her wife, Orla, moved to Valentia Island in 2018, they dreamed of creating something brand new.

Now a few years later, they’ve brought us Ireland’s very first vermouth. Deliciously made from 20 different botanicals that Anna and Orla forage from the Kerry Coast on the Wild Atlantic Way.

 

Madeline McKeever - Brown Envelope Seeds

What started for Madeline as a seed-saving hobby is now a business that produces hundreds of varieties of organic seeds, now going strong for 18 years.

Madeline’s work is critical for the future of food. How else can we preserve this island's food security and biodiversity without locally-grown organic seeds?

 

Maggie and Michael - Roaring Water Sea Vegetable

Maggie and Michael work with Paul Cobb to produce vegan sausages, burgers and pudding, all made from homegrown wakame.

Thanks to their work, your typical Irish fry can be a lot more nutritious once it’s fortified with nutrient-dense seaweed.   

 

Jerry Cronin - Cnoc Na bhFiach Bantry Honey

We’re spoiled when it comes to local honey here in Bantry, and it’s all thanks to Jerry who’s been a beekeeper for over a quarter of a century.

Lately he’s been bringing attention to Ireland’s rapidly vanishing biodiversity which is causing an alarming decline in the population of wild bees. 

Anytime we chat to Jerry, he always gives us an even deeper appreciation for bees.    

 

Stephen - Organic Alliums and Cheese

It’s always exciting when Stephen comes around, because we know he’s brought something tasty with him.

Sometimes it’s locally grown organic alliums. Sometimes it’s handmade cheese. Sometimes it’s a delicious cross between the two. No matter what he brings, it’s bound to be good.

 

Kate Dempsey - Kinsale Mead Co.

Since 2016 Kate has worked with her husband Denis to revive the ancient art of mead making.

It’s thanks to them that Ireland got its first new meadery in 200 years. 

Kate and Denis always intended their mead to be food-friendly. So there’s great fun to be had tasting their different meads alongside different local foods.    

 

Sarah Hennessy - Durrus Cheese

Sarah co-owns Durrus Cheese along with her mother, Jeffa Gill, who started making Durrus over 40 years ago. 

They’ve since added a few different cheeses to their delicious repertoire. But every cheese remains handmade using traditional techniques. 

 

Mary Pawle - Mary Pawle Wines

As far as we know, Mary is Ireland’s only wine importer who exclusively sources organic wines, as she and her husband, Ivan, have been doing for over 25 years.

It’s thanks to Mary that we have such an impressive selection that goes beyond organic wines to also include biodynamic, natural and vegan wines. 

 

Hayley Power Organic Loose Leaf Tea

When you have a chat with Hayley, she’s not just talking to you… she’s also intuiting which of her uniquely blended teas is most suited to your wellness needs in that moment.

More often than not, she’s right on the money. 

From calming to rejuvenating, Hayley has created the tea to help you feel more deeply connected, sip after sip.

How lucky are we?

One thing the Food Fair highlighted was just how lucky we are to have so many incredible local products available to us. 

We don’t want that to change. 

That’s why we do all we can to support our local producers, so they’re with us for years to come. 

Then we partied with Organico staff, past and present 

The day after the Food Fair, it was time for a birthday party!

The invite was open to everyone who’d worked at Organico over the last 30 years.

That means we got to see people we hadn’t seen in a very long time alongside people we’d worked with only the day before.

The party really emphasised for us just how many people have been part of this 30-year long story. Each and every one of them has helped shape Organico.  

Without any one of them, who knows where we’d be today?

You’re part of our story, too

When the crowd broke out in song to sing Happy Birthday at the Food Fair, we thought ‘we must be doing something right.’

We know not every business is as fortunate as we are to have such a great support network.

Whether you’re new to us, or you’ve been with us all 30 years, we’re so glad to have you in our community.