While the typical Irish shopping basket does not look terribly different from that of his parents\u2019 generation, the year-round availability of fruit and veg has been one of the biggest developments of the past 30 years, Murphy says.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the great evolutions has been the development of supply chains to bring products to the shelves in Ireland that would not have been on the shelves for 52 weeks when I was a kid.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember things like easy-peeler season, things arrived and left at various points in the year. What we concentrate on at Dole is that ability to bring fruit and veg to the shelves of our customers.\u201d <\/p>\n
Close to the top of the food tree \u2013 and among the most visible to Irish shoppers \u2013 is Keelings<\/a>.<\/p>\n Based in north Co Dublin, where it farms 450 out of a total of 3,000 acres, each year it produces around 200 million strawberries. Its raspberries, blueberries and bananas are commonplace.<\/p>\n Retail director David Keeling spends his working day at Keelings\u2019 vast FoodCentral complex close to the northern runway at Dublin Airport.<\/p>\n The company has stationed a farm shop at the entrance to the sprawling industrial estate, where its distinctive branding draws the eyes of passing motorists. Half a mile away lies its distribution operation.<\/p>\n \u201cIt takes a lot of acres to supply Irish strawberries, just to meet demand,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n Keeling is third generation and has been involved in the farming of fruit for 27 years. One of four family members on the board, he helps oversee a workforce of 2,700, of whom 1,800 are based in Ireland. Its story since the late 2000s has been one of growth. <\/p>\n \u201cIt was sort of 2009-10 and it was quite a tough environment with the global recession, and the Irish economy was in a difficult place,\u201d says Keeling.<\/p>\n \u201cWe did some really simple research that found that Irish consumers wanted to have a relationship with Irish growers. We did some trials, then we invested in some good people to help us market the brand and we invested in the marketing and got great support from our customers and from Irish consumers.\u201d<\/p>\n The first half of the year has been a busy period for the company, with almost constant planting of berries. It is competing, in many cases, with cheaper foreign imports. According to Keeling, though, the demand for a quality, Irish-grown product has offset any pricing issues.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause of the lack of scale and the cost of doing business in Ireland, for Irish growers to survive they do need to get a premium,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd it\u2019s really important that people understand that and support them from a food security point of view, from a freshness point of view, from a jobs point of view.\u201d<\/p>\n The company is eyeing an increase in domestic production. Keeling says it has experimented with growing strawberries in the darker months of the year, a period of time that traditionally would have proven barren.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you take strawberries between mid-April and mid-October, there\u2019s quite a high percentage of supply of Irish strawberries,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n \u201cAnd really, the concept is that we follow the sun. So when you\u2019re outside that season, we\u2019re having to import from various countries around the world. We are doing some trials in terms of having strawberries in the winter. <\/p>\n \u201cFor the last year, we\u2019ve had commercial production of winter strawberries grown under LED lights. And that provided a product in November and December. So extending the Irish season by eight weeks.\u201d <\/p>\n Keeling says the quality of strawberries grown under this method has proven good but it remains very expensive.<\/p>\n Also benefiting from a rising demand for domestically produced fruit is Clarke\u2019s Fresh Fruit in Stamullen, Co Meath.<\/p>\n Run by Pat and Mary Clarke, the business farms 80 acres and at the height of the harvesting season employs around 160 people.<\/p>\n \u201cFruit used to be only eaten at weekends,\u201d says Pat Clarke. \u201cNow it is part of every meal \u2013 it is a superfood.\u201d<\/p>\n Having farmed fresh fruit in the area for more than 60 years, Pat explains why the microclimates of north Co Dublin and Meath are home to so many of these businesses.<\/p>\n \u201cHere on the east coast we have the lowest rainfall in Ireland. We\u2019re four miles from the coastline and even on hot summer days you get a nice breeze from the [Irish] sea,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n \u201cA very sunny day is great for selling strawberries \u2013 but not always for growing them. Once it is over 20 degrees it\u2019s not great for them. They ripen quicker, they\u2019re smaller and more premature.\u201d<\/p>\n Like Keelings, the Clarkes have taken advantage of new growing methods to expand their production.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is much easier to grow today than when I started,\u201d says Pat. \u201cEverything is in cosy tunnels and protected from the weather. If it is raining today nothing changes on our farm.<\/p>\n \u201cYears ago, you would have had May frost \u2013 but it is not a problem any more. Everything is grown at eye level \u2013 everyone is standing up \u2013 the tabletop system. It is much, much easier.\u201d<\/p>\n He says that high winds have caused challenges over recent years but the farm is able to put out extra reinforcement and as a result has \u201csurvived very well\u201d.<\/p>\n Like every successful operation in the area, the Clarkes have had to master the art of distribution \u2013 and the ability to get their product from field to plate in the most efficient manner possible.<\/p>\n \u201cWe pick, pack and dispatch on the same day,\u201d says Mary Clarke. \u201cThe fruit is picked in the morning \u2013 and you could have it on your kitchen table by the evening.\u201d<\/p>\n The Dublin hinterland occupied by Keelings and Clarke\u2019s is also home to some of Ireland\u2019s biggest potato growers. Close to the fruit companies in scale and importance \u2013 but not carrying the same brand awareness, perhaps \u2013 is Sam Dennigan & Co.<\/p>\n The potato giant is based in Oldtown, and is one of the country\u2019s largest producers and distributors. Its cold storage and logistics capability has made it a big cog in the country\u2019s supply chain.<\/p>\n A family-owned business, run by Joe and Sam Dennigan, it has a workforce of more than 800 employees along with three offices in Ireland and one in Spain. It handles around 50,000 tonnes of potatoes annually.<\/p>\n Like many of these larger producers it has its own transport fleet. About 50 growers in the region supply the company, which has three separate packing departments.<\/p>\n![\"Pat](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/IIKUDEB4QJGIHAMYHAIQ6KARCI.JPG\")
Pat Clarke, owner of Clarke’s Fresh Fruit\u00a0in Stamullen, Co Meath. Photograph: Alan Betson\/The Irish Times<\/p>\n
![\"‘Fruit](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/GGBICCGERVB2TOIWCG76YQDHPI.JPG\")
\u2018Fruit used to be only eaten at weekends,\u2019 says Pat Clarke. \u2018Now it is part of every meal.\u2019 Photograph: Alan Betson\/The Irish Times<\/p>\n