Nestled in the heart of the countryside in Co Roscommon is family-run business Waldron Family Meats.

Michael and Yvonne Waldron started the business in 1989 with a desire to offer natural meat products.

“We really wanted to keep with tradition,” says Yvonne. “There was so much over-processed product coming on the market. It was all about getting product out there the cheapest way possible.”

Waldron Family Meats work with natural products, using only 100% Bord Bia assured pork.

“It’s 100% local Irish pork,” says Yvonne. “We don’t put additives in it. We produce everything ourselves.”

Yvonne says the origin of products is something that matters to Simply Better and has been a key aspect of their partnership.

Waldron Family Meats now have seven lines with Simply Better, including hand cut unsmoked Irish ham, unsmoked Irish eye loin bacon joint and hand cut unsmoked Irish bacon.

Yvonne says expanding the range with Simply Better has been a slow but steady process.

“The Simply Better crew go at our pace, in line with our capacity,” says Yvonne.

Waldron Family Meats take great pride in their curing method, what Yvonne calls “slow home cure.”

“We give the product time to mature here and we don’t let it out until it’s ready.”

Waldron Family Meats cure the meat by hand and let it rest, a process that can take between five and ten days.

“It’s not a thing that can be rushed,” says Yvonne. “There’s a lot of products out there now and they’re literally packed in a bag, shipped off and cured as they go but we don’t do that.”

Once the meat is cooked, Waldron Family Meats cut the sizes by hand. Then it is packed, labelled, netted and boxed, and finally, ready to be shipped.

Yvonne says that Simply Better have been a big help in the production stages.

“They are a great team to work with. They help with the technical end, the logistics and how to promote the product – all the things that we wouldn’t be experts in.”

Award-winning produce

Waldron Family Meats have won numerous Great Taste and Blas na hÉireann awards over the years. In 2024, they brought home a massive 13 awards and were crowned 2024 Great Taste award winner for their dry cured bacon chop in wild honey glaze.

“We started off winning Craft Butchers awards in 1989 and we have consistently won every year since that,” says Yvonne. “I suppose it’s one thing to win an award but it’s another thing to consistently be recognised over a long period of time. We never get complacent about the products.”

Yvonne says the Simply Better range can alleviate some of the stress on Christmas morning.

“For the chef involved, there’s nothing as handy as sticking something in the oven and not having to look at it again,” says Yvonne. “All I do is take one of those Christmas hams and slice it up. I put it on top of the rack and place in the oven with a little drop of water on it and heat it up.

Yvonne likes her ham glazed for Christmas dinner. “I keep it simple, a little honey and mustard, and it’s perfect,” she says.

They may be crafting turkeys rather than hams, but Hogan’s Farm in Kells, Co Meath share the same dedication to tradition and quality as Waldron Family Meats.

Paul and Fintan Hogan are proud to continue a family tradition of rearing premium-quality turkeys. Their parents started the business back in 1962, and with the farm now in its second generation, Hogan’s Farm remains a family affair. Paul and Fintan’s wives, Hildra and Sandra, as well as Paul’s daughter, are all involved in its operations.

Naturally, the business has changed a lot since Paul and Fintan started out.

“Back then, business was focused on supplying butchers and hotels,” Paul reflects. “We weren’t dealing with supermarkets until we started dealing with Dunnes Stores. Now we’re 10 years working with the Simply Better team and it has gone from strength to strength,” says Paul.

Hogan’s Farm produce a range of Simply Better products, including a free range turkey, a turkey crown with prime wings, and a butter basted turkey. The Simply Better heritage bronze butter basted fresh Irish reared turkey breast joint with a wild sage and onion sourdough stuffing won gold at this year’s Irish Quality Food Awards 2024.

They also do a crown of turkey, which is what Paul cooks for Christmas Day.

“All the Simply Better bronze turkeys are reared on our own farm. From where I’m sitting now, they are no further than 200 metres away,” says Paul.

“The turkeys we do here are a complete breed of turkey. It’s called a heritage bronze turkey breed,” he adds.

“Everything we do with Simply Better requires a lot of attention to detail. It’s handcrafted and all about added value. For example, the bacon lattice is a butter basted joint with cranberry and apricot stuffing and a bacon lattice on top,” says Paul. “There’s a lot of different products all produced in our own factory here by hand.”

Talking about the Simply Better Irish reared turkey, Paul says, “I don’t think there’s anybody else doing this type of turkey in Ireland. It’s outdoors 24 hours a day in a secret woodland garden. I suppose it’s like a wild turkey.”

The work with Simply Better “has grown year on year” says Paul. He says it’s a “big and very important” part of the business.

“If we, at Hogan’s Farm, get Christmas Day right for Simply Better, and they get it right for their customers, we have done a lot right for the customer. But if we get it wrong –” smiles Paul, “well, you’re sort of never forgiven if you get Christmas Day wrong,” he laughs. “And touch wood, we’re dealing with Simply Better for over 10 years and we have never got it wrong.”

This year, Hogan’s Farm are producing two brand new products with Simply Better: a 1.8kg butter basted turkey and a boned and rolled turkey, which Paul describes as “a turkey breast roll and two lovely bone legs each side of the roll, so people can cook them separately.”

“All the products have cooking instructions and how many people it will serve,” says Paul. “A lot of the products are supplied on a ready-to-cook tray so it’s just a matter of taking off the packaging and popping in the oven.

“If they follow the cooking instructions, they’re sure to have a lovely Christmas dinner.”