Pancake brand a real recipe for success

QUICK Pancakes, an innovative product from a company founded 162 years ago, has been chosen by international buyers at Marketplace Ireland for a special award.

Some 220 buyers from Europe, the United States and Asia, who attended the two-day Bord Bia organised event at Croke Park, Dublin, were asked to select a product from those showcased by more than 50 Irish food and drink companies.

They selected Quick Pancakes Special Editions from Odlums, the flour and oatmeal milling company which was formed in 1845 and was family owned and managed up to 1988.

Odlums, now jointly owned by Greencore and IAWS, operates modern flour mills in Dublin, Cork and Portarlington and a specialist oatmeal mill in Naas. It employs 160 people.

The Innovation Zone at Marketplace Ireland highlighted prevailing trends which impact on consumer decision making. It showcased 88 examples of responsive Irish product solutions.

Bord Bia chief executive Aidan Cotter said the culture of resourcefulness, receptiveness and uncompromising quality that drives the Irish food and drink industry was seen to striking effect.

Kjell Nordström, Associate Professor at the Institute of International Business at the Stockholm School of Economics, told delegates yesterday that only true originality will allow a company to stand out from the pack.

He said with a social, economic and political environment that highlights individuality as never before, consumers are driven to personalise their lives and the challenge for business is to stay ahead.

“This personal approach to things will have an enormous impact on business from public sector, to housing, to packaging. We are only at the beginning of this change,” he said.

Musgrave Group chief executive Chris Martin said responding to consumer needs is the secret to driving growth for the grocery distributor.

“The Musgrave business works because we have a unique relationship with our retailers. The retailers are entrepreneurs who own their own business and work with us to offer something different and better to their customers.