Silver Hill Duck is to appear on the in-flight menu on Emirates Airlines within the next three months after the company struck a significant distribution deal.
The Co. Monaghan company, which was set up in 1962, confirmed to Agriland that it will produce duck fillets for passengers flying in business class.
The agreement with Dubai-based distribution company, Fresh Express, will also see Irish duck appear on the menus in up to 50 high-end restaurants in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
The company is part of Bord Bia’s stand showcasing Irish producers at the Food and Hotel Asia trade fair in Singapore this week.
Silver Hill Duck currently holds a 5% market share for duck in Singapore but has the potential to treble the figure due to customer demand.
However, this depends on whether it secures planning permission for a new plant at its site in Emyvale which would increase its weekly production to 120,000 ducks.
The company is currently liaising with Monaghan County Council and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on waste water treatment and manure management compliance.
“We’re at about 80,000 ducks a week at the moment. We can increase numbers in our breeding farms and in our hatcheries.
“We’re actively recruiting outside growers, farmers who get a day-old duck and rear it to 42 days of age,” Greg Devlin, sales and marketing manager with Silver Hill Duck, told Agriland.
“The bottleneck is very much in the plant. The plant is 60 years old, it owes us absolutely nothing.
“Once we get a new plant that will get us up to 120,000 and that we feel will service the demand based on current customers, but also new markets and applications,” he said.
The company typically sends around two containers of 10,000 frozen ducks by sea to customers in Singapore each month through its exclusive Asian distributor Irish Duck Company.
This week, Silver Hill marked the milestone of supplying 500,000 ducks to restaurants owned by Tung Lok Group in Singapore.
Five years ago, the group developed “duck-concept” restaurants, including Duckland, which only serves Silver Hill Duck.
They also use the Irish produce for Peking duck, which is a local delicacy.
Andrew Tjioe, founder and chief executive of Tung Lok Group, told Agriland that they started using duck from Silver Hill in 2014.
He learned of the reputation of the company through its presence in Chinatown in London, where it has 98% of the market.
“We knew the reputation of Irish duck, so we made it a point to bring it into our restaurants. The response of the public has been very encouraging,” he said.
Tung Lok Group also serves Irish beer, whiskey, oysters, beef and pork in its restaurants.
Katie Meegan, who is part of the Bord Bia marketing fellowship programme, works with Silver Hill Duck and Lakeland Dairies to build their strategy and identify markets in Singapore and Asia.
“Sustainability is hugely important in the [Singapore] market from every point of view. You can see it developing through different supply chains, people want creditability in where their food comes from.
“The two companies I’m working with have had great exposure in the market in the last year.
“It’s been challenging with Covid-19, especially with Silver Hill Duck with foodservice opening and closing again, it’s really exciting to see the restaurant services opening up again,” she said.