Wicklow Rapeseed Oil has earned itself a fine reputation since it first hit the store shelves two years ago. Irish Tractor & Agri spoke to its founder Keith Symes to learn all about the brand’s quality and its quick rise to success.
Going out on your own may well have been somewhat risky for many Irish farmers back in 2013, but for Keith Symes the right ingredients to start his own company were there – literally.
Since that time, Wicklow Rapeseed Oil has been flourishing to the point where its brand is now a back-to-back winner in the much esteemed ‘Great Taste Awards’ and could well be on its way to supermarket shelves in the United Kingdom in 2016.
That’s an impressive blossom in the space of 24 months, which is roughly the amount of time which Keith took to research the market before launching his superb product.
“Based on the family farm at Hawkstown Lower, Co Wicklow, we currently employ three staff,” explained Keith.
“Basically, we grow Oilseed Rapeseed Rape on the family farm and pay local farmers a premium price for growing oilseed rape. A certain variety of seed is used that thrives in the Garden of Irelands finest soil and produces a flavoursome healthy cooking oil of Extra Virgin standard. Before launching Wicklow Rapeseed Oil, I spent two years researching the market, attending courses and creating a Flavoursome Rapeseed Oil which is light in flavour.”
“Oils are very like wines, the quality and flavour are affected by various parameters from Farm to Table; these include seed variety, climate, soil fertility, drying techniques, seed cleaning, cold pressing seed and oil filtration. We carefully ensure each stage is carried out to achieve 100% satisfaction resulting in a light and nutty flavoursome cooking oil.”
Since graduating from agricultural college, Keith has farmed the land which has passed down through generations of my family.
During this time he has been tillage farming, growing a variety of crops such as barley, wheat, oats and oilseed rape. The rich fertile soil and favourable climate in this area lends itself well to a high quality harvest.
Keith’s passion for farming along with his ambition to start a business which is linked with farming led him towards the idea of producing Extra Virgin Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil.
“I saw an opening in the market for this great healthy product and began working on establishing Wicklow Rapeseed Oil,” he explained.
“Over previous years I have spent much time researching rapeseed oil. This partly involved growing and harvesting various different seed types in order to find a seed variety that thrives in our soil conditions and produces a flavoursome, healthy cooking oil of Extra Virgin Standard.”
Since his youth, Keith’s background had always been in farming and he would graduate with a college degree in his chosen field.
After that, he moved up the country to start work in power stations before founding the company which he now runs today.
“I started off farming when I was a young lad and would have continued farming all my life,” said the Wicklow native.
“I studied Agricultural Engineering at Tralee IT for three years”
He continued: “After college I worked as an Engineering constructing gas combined cycle power stations in Dublin. I also worked on peat power stations in the Midlands while traveling home at weekends to help my father on the farm.
With its own unique flavour, it can be used for a variety of cooking purposes, which can be added to your favourite salad or marinade while you can also use it as dipping oil for rustic breads.
You can also use it when making a stir fry or when roasting. Rapeseed oil will add a richness of colour, taste and texture to your finished dish.
Wicklow Rapeseed Oil is a truly tasty versatile oil with all the nutrition.
The next step now for Keith is to introduce a new low-calorie cooking spray.
“We’re launching a new 2 Cal Cooking Spray which is low in calories and contains only 6% Saturated fat and 96% Omega 3, 6 % 9 which helps Lower your Cholesterol and keep a Happy Heart.
It is the only 100 per cent natural Extra Virgin Rapeseed Oil Cooking Spray on the market in Ireland, this product is ideal for people on slimming programmes as you can measure the amount of calories on each dish e.g. “2 Cal per Spray” whilst obtaining all the health benefits of Extra Virgin Rapeseed Oil explained Keith”.
Wicklow Rapeseed Oil Cooking Spray will be available in Supervalu’s in January 2016.
The health benefits of Wicklow Rapeseed Oil are definitely something which potential customers should take into account.
Rapeseed oil has less than half the saturated fat content (6%) when compared to all other cooking oils (e.g. olive oil 14%, sunflower oil 13%). Diets high in saturated fat content are linked to heart disease and high cholesterol etc.
It has 52% mono-unsaturated fat (Omega 9) and 25% poly-unsaturated fat (Omega 3 & 6). Omega 9 aids brain development in unborn children and has been linked to reduced rates of premature birth and low birth weights. It also can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke.
Omega 3 & 6 are important essential fatty acids that we cannot produce ourselves and can only get from our food. Eating foods rich in Omega 3 fatty acids can help lower the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, and cancer, as well as lower LDL or “Bad Cholesterol”. Nutritionists suggest 2:1 Omega 6 to Omega 3 ratio in the diet. Rapeseed Oil strikes this balance.
Rapeseed oil contains Vitamin E. This vitamin has a number of very important functions, (e.g. it helps protect cell membranes by acting as an antioxidant). Vitamin E is also necessary to preserve Omega 3 in cooking, helping to keep its nutritional value.
Apart from the healthy upside, the flavour is also something which consumers take into account by Keith’s customers.
“My main client is Supervalu,” he explained. “They’re choosing my product because of its flavour, because it’s suitable for salad dressings and stir frying, roasting etc.
“The other reason is because it’s a very strong brand name, plus it’s local as well. It’s creating a lot of work while putting a lot into the local economy as well. Everything I source is Irish.
“Apart from the quality, we also have chilli, lemon and garlic flavours.”
It’s hard to argue with Keith there, as his products have been winning some of the most prestigious awards available when it comes to the oil food category.
Wicklow Rapeseed Oil has won back-to-back Great Taste Awards in 2014 and 2015 in its oil category and will be going for a hat-trick in 2016.
“It’s the biggest award in the world and the most prestigious one you can win in this line of work,” said Keith.
“The way it works is you send your product across to the UK and they have a panel which judges the products. If you win, you get to place the ‘Great Taste’ logo on to your products, website, flyers etc.”
Next up on the agenda for Keith is to export his product across the Channel in conjunction with Bord Bia.
“I am looking into export at the moment,” he confirmed. “I’m currently in some small butchers in Scotland and now I’m looking into expanding into supermarkets in the UK.
“I’m linking up with Bord Bia and hopefully they’re going to help me export my products in the future. We will be partaking in BordBia Superbrands in January.”
He concluded: “It’s all about getting out there, getting the PR and keeping the quality up.”
For Keith Symes and his company, it definitely looks like a case of ‘so far, so good’ with more success set to come.
Wicklow Rapeseed Oil
Address: Hawkstown
Lower, Co Wicklow
Tel: +353 (0) 404 79574
Web: wicklowrapeseedoil.ie
E-mail: info@
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 4 No 2, February 2016
