Sweet success for Cavan chocolatier at Irish Quality Food and Drink Awards

Áine Handmade Chocolate, which employs 10 people in Stradone, Co. Cavan, received the accolade from a judging panel made up of leading food experts and critics.

Commenting on the success, Aldi Ireland’s Group Buying Director Finbar McCarthy said, “Forging lasting relationships with local producers is extremely important to Aldi. The innovative and consistently excellent producers we work with from Cavan makes this an easy task.  Achieving recognition of this kind is further endorsement that our locally sourced Cavanproducts are second to none.”

Now in their fourth year, the Irish Quality Food and Drink Awards recognise and reward excellence in food and drink product development by producers across Ireland.

Áine Hand Made Chocolate has been making deliciously smooth and creamy handmade Irish chocolate since 1999. The Cavan-based company was founded by Ann Rudden, a woman with a passion for her art. Her vision was to create chocolate as it should be - mouth watering, melt-in-the-mouth magic that is made with only the purest, freshest, natural ingredients.

The company, which originally started out in Dublin, relocated to Ann’s hometown of Stradone in 2007 converting her father’s old unused garage business into a 5,000 sq foot chocolate factory.
Today, Áine Hand Made Chocolate employs a team of 10 who shares that passion for producing heavenly, handmade chocolate. They produce up to 50 tonnes of chocolate every year for market. Only the freshest butter and cream and local Irish ingredients make it into Áine’s delicious truffles, Irish crème liqueurs, chocolate bars and Easter eggs.

This is not the first 'Food Oscar' that Áine Hand Made Chocolates has won with over 20 Great Taste Awards already