Achill Island Sea Salt wins top prize at Great Taste Awards 2024

ACHILL Island Sea Salt was one of only 26 Irish food and food producers and the only one in Mayo to be awarded three stars in the prestigious annual Great Taste Awards 2024.

Achill Island Sea Salt were awarded a Great Taste 3-star award, which is the highest accolade to be achieved for 'extraordinarily tasty food and drink'.

Run by the Guild of Fine Food in the UK, the annual Great Taste awards see a highly-qualified panel of judges - made up of food buyers, chefs, restaurateurs, producers, critics, writers and journalists - invited to test a variety of products, each of which have been stripped of their packaging and branding.

The family-owned business picked up the award for its Achill Island Smoked Sea Salt and was the only Connacht-based food or drink producer to pick up the award.

The judges described the flavour of the product as a 'natural and wild product' which has a 'highly smoky aroma 'as if you can smell the embers of a dying fire'.

“On the plate, the smoke delivers the salt and the sea for tasting, stepping aside to allow them to shine. An unforgettable experience and a truly beautiful product

“The smoke on the nose opens well and this follows through with some power onto the palate. We found much to enjoy – natural and sympathetic and well-produced,” the judges wrote.

In a post on their social media platforms, Achill Island Sea Salt said they were absolutely thrilled to achieve three stars for their Smoked Sea Salt which is produced at their factory in Bunnacurry on Achill Island.

“Last year we decided to start smoking our sea salt in-house as we wanted to have more control over the smoking process. After many, many, trials by the team we finally got it right! So we are over the moon to receive recognition for the quality and great taste of our smoked sea salt,” they wrote.

Nearly 3,500 companies from around the world entered Great Taste this year, between them offering 13,672 products for review. Each entry was meticulously blind-tasted by the Guild’s expert judging panel of over 500 food critics, chefs, recipe creators, buyers, retailers, and other specialists in the field of food and drink. Entries were analysed across 92 judging days, each receiving detailed feedback, whether or not they obtained an award.

Only 1.9 percent of all entries (266 in total globally) received a 3-star award, given to ‘extraordinarily tasty food and drink’, while 10.1 percent or 1,386 in total, were awarded 2-stars, for being ‘above and beyond delicious’ and 28.8 percent, 3,938 in total, were awarded 1-star, for ‘food and drink that delivers fantastic flavour’. Products made in Ireland won a total of 499 awards, with 353 obtaining 1-star and 125 obtaining 2-stars.

Achill Island Sea Salt was founded by Marjorie and Kieran O'Malley in their home in Keel on Achill Island in 2013. The product quickly became a favourite for chefs for its 'soft flaky texture' and has won numerous culinary awards. In recent years the O'Malley's moved the production of Achill Island Sea Salt from their home to a new factory in Bunnacurry on Achill Island which also offers guided tours in the summer season.

Last November, the Department of Agriculture announced that Achill Island Sea Salt's application for a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) had been successful which means that 'Achill Island Sea Salt' is the name given to a hand harvested sea salt from the waters around Achill Island.