The Happy Pear has made its foray into organic with the introduction of a ‘super greens’ pesto that launched with Planet Organic in September.
The B Corp certified business, whose mantra is to champion ‘veg power’, has a fruit & veg shop, café, bakery, roastery and four-acre regenerative organic farm in County Wicklow, as well as a portfolio of 80 retail products. These include granolas, soups, dips, meal pots, sauces, snacks, pizzas, burgers and oat milks.
Owner Dave Flynn told FFD that an organic range was a “natural progression” for the business that he started with his identical twin Steve in 2004.
“On our own organic regenerative farm in Wicklow, we see firsthand how healthier soils lead to more nutrient-dense veg, richer biodiversity and better tasting food. Organic Super Greens Pesto is our first certified organic product, and it’s a statement of intent: we want to align our products more closely with the farming practices we believe in,” he said.
With an RRP of £3.69 for 135g, Organic Super Greens Pesto combines organic spinach and kale – some of which is grown on The Happy Pear’s own farm – with toasted cashew nuts, veg oil, garlic, apple cider vinegar and a touch of yeast for depth of flavour.
The Happy Pear’s range is widely available in Ireland thanks to listings with SuperValu and Centra. The brand is less known in the UK, but is building a presence through relationships with distributors like CLF and Cotswold Fayre and retailers, including Ocado.
“We’ve just launched 13 products on Ocado, and we’re actively in discussions with Waitrose, Tesco, and Sainsbury’s. Our UK growth strategy is about building awareness through strong retail partners, supporting launches with our digital community (we’ve more than two million followers globally, with nearly half in the UK), and showing that plant-based can be both delicious and everyday,” said Flynn.
He said that Super Greens is “just the start” of the company’s organic offer, with its second organic product, Organic Creamy Hummus, launching this month [October].
“Beyond that, we’d love to bring more organic pestos, dips, and sauces to market, as these make it super easy for people to add more veg to everyday meals,” said Flynn.
This article first appeared in the October-November issue of Fine Food Digest.
