Neill’s Flour celebrates 150 years in business
Celebrity cook Jenny Bristow was one of the guests of honour at celebrations for Northern Ireland brand Neill’s Flour’s 150th year in business.
The event in Tedfords Restaurant, Belfast, on Tuesday morning heard how the company first opened in 1867, when a 48 year-old Queen Victoria was 30 years into her reign as monarch and Andrew Johnson was the US President, following the assassination of his predecessor Abraham Lincoln just two years earlier.
James Neill founded the flour mill in Belfast three years before the completion of Belfast Castle and 39 years before the nearby Belfast City Hall was built.
150 years later, Neill’s Flour still operates from its original College Place North location and is performing stronger than ever, having contributed significantly to the Northern Ireland economy over the past century and a half.
Now, Neill’s Flour is Northern Ireland’s market leading flour mill and produces a wide range of flour products for the bakery trade, specialising in traditional Irish products blended specifically to meet customer individual requirements.
Neill’s general manager Barry Kelly said: “There aren’t many companies in Northern Ireland that are still in existence after 150 years and operating from their original premises, so we are extremely proud to be celebrating this truly significant milestone in the history of Neill’s Flour.
“When James Neill started the business in 1867, his aim was to produce the best quality flour possible for his customers and that remains our aim today. However optimistic James may have been in those days, I’m sure he would be proud to see that the company has stood the test of time and grown from strength to strength over such a long period of time.
“We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our customers, suppliers, partners and stakeholders with whom we have worked for a century and a half now to make the Neill’s Flour brand one of Northern Ireland’s best loved and most iconic brands.
“The high quality and unique taste of Neill’s Flour is loved around the world and we look forward to playing our own part in the company’s history by developing the brand further as we look to the next 150 years.”
Northern Ireland cook, writer and TV personality Jenny Bristow also paid tribute to Neill’s.
“I’ve always used Neill’s Flour in my baking and would like to wish all of the team a big Happy Birthday in the company’s 150th year,” Jenny said.
“Neill’s still has those same traditional values with regards to home baking that it did in the 19th century and I’m proud to have worked with the company in recent years to research and develop new and exciting mixes of flour. I’d like to wish them all the best for the next 150 years.”
The company mills all types of flour including Self Raising, Golden Fleece Plain, Self Raising Soda Bread Flour, Fine and Coarse Wholemeal flour.
For more information go to www.neillsflour.co.uk.
