There was a time when organic food was mainly associated with wholefood and vegetarian food.
Throw your mind's eye back to the time when we all wondered: who shot JR? Or whether those Joan Collins shoulder pads should have planning permission.
There was the emergence of the Irish environmental movement with Carnsore Point; we had Live Aid and later Self Aid. There was Madness and Maradona; there were Hunger Strikes, the Miners' Strike, and the battle of the Beanfield.
Fast forward to today: these days this 80s vision of organic is no longer dominant. At the same time, it is also the case that people in general are more aware of the benefits of organic, whole and vegetarian food.
In particular, for the urban, female and under 35 demographic, organic, vegetarian and whole foods make up the essential parts of a holy trinity.
Along with this triad, there is also a growing band of 'eating withouts'. In other words, people who avoid some or all of the following: gluten, dairy, salt, egg, wheat, transfats and more.
Finally, there are a small number who just prefer the taste and flavour of at least some vegetarian food: not all customers in Cork's Cafe Paradiso are vegetarians. Sometimes, meat is a crutch for lazy, mediocre or hurried cooking.
Dee's �Eat Well, Be Happy� organic wholefood burgers is a Cork-based company which ticks all of the above boxes: health, eating without and taste. This is quite an achievement.
The brainchild of Deirdre Collins, Dee's began in a small kitchen in Innisshannon in 2006. Since then, production and profile have ramped up. The burgers however, are still handmade.
I asked Deirdre Collins why she choose her food business route: �I had the idea for Dee�s �Eat Well, Be Happy� about three years ago. I studied Food Science in UCC and spent a lot of time in supermarket aisles of looking for fast, healthy options for my lunch or dinner.
�I was always amazed at the amount of salt, fat, sugar and artificial additives in food. I decided to develop something that could be prepared quickly but that had a very high nutritional value.�
Her expertise in food science has helped with the development of her products. According to Collins: �Modern food processing methods destroy nutrients. Though we have plenty of food to eat, most of it is processed and contains too many artificial ingredients�
She points to the lack of necessary micronutrients �such as selenium, copper and zinc� and the fact that she herself uses �natural, non-processed wholefood ingredients such as local vegetables, organic grains, protein rich seeds and fair trade spices�.
In particular, �the special ingredient I use is organic hempseed, a superfood and natural source of omega 3, 6, 9 and GLA. Hempseed is also a complete protein, easily digested and contains all the amino acids� says Collins, whose burgers are also suitable for coeliacs and vegans.
She also points out that her burgers are high in fibre, without salt or sugar, and cooked macrobiotically.
I asked Dee to elaborate on her sourcing: �All my dry wholefood ingredients beans, grains etc come from Irish Independent Health Foods based in Kerry. My carrots come from Leo Dunne in Durrow County Laois� Her mushrooms and seeds come from companies based outside the jurisdiction.
Production has certainly increased with her new 1000sq ft unit in Ballincollig: �Capacity at the moment is 1200 units or 600 packets of burgers per day.�
Needless to say, the foodie havens of the south west, from Scally's Supervalu in Clonakilty to the Quay Co-op in Cork were in on it early.
Following her recent launch in the Glucksman (UCC), she tells me �new shops are coming on stream every week. Just last week the products flew out of the fridges in the Organic Supermarket in Blackrock, in Dublin�.
Even a few butchers have taken the plunge: Tormeys in Galway and Martin Carey�s in Bandon are two.
Dee may reach to the stratosphere from here on in, but can there be any better recognition of a veggie burger than the approval of a butcher in Bandon?
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