During the first Covid lockdown, Conor Sweeny was at home watching TV and snacking on a tub of ice cream. It was a non-dairy variety and this professionally trained chef wasn’t impressed. He reckoned he could produce something that tasted much better, which prompted him to start developing the plant-based recipes that have since become Dae ice cream sandwiches.
“Basically I stumbled into a market that had been badly neglected, and this was the start of creating a business based around tasty, premium, free-from treats that could be enjoyed by all,” says Sweeny. “According to the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute, up to 5 per cent of adults and 3 per cent of children suffer from food allergies, while food hypersensitivity is also on the rise.
“The ice cream market is dominated by big players who fall short in their options for people who suffer with allergies, and we want to change this. Our aim is to be the trend setters in this sector, so we are looking to make a big bang. We are one of the few brands operating from our own allergy monitored facility and we lab test every product to ensure its safety and push the boundaries on what ‘free from’ treats really means,” Sweeny says.
“Dublin City LEO were good to us,” says Sweeny. “We were able to draw down their priming grant, which allowed us to hire our first two staff members, who are still with us today. We’ve also taken part in the FoodWorks accelerator, and Teagasc, Bord Bia and Enterprise Ireland have all supported our growth and helped get us export ready for the coming year.”