Following the news that Halen Môn is to join the likes of Champagne and Parma ham as a Protected Food Name (Protected Designation of Origin, to be exact), we were invited to a reception yesterday to help celebrate the fine food the UK produces, at DEFRA’s Westminster office.
The reception was a brilliant opportunity to showcase our product and meet journalists from the BBC and The Times, as well as Owen Paterson, the Minister in charge of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. We thanked DEFRA for all their help with the application process, gave away precious boxes of our ‘Diamonds of the Sea’ to lucky attendees, and mingled with other producers of PFN’s, including Cornish clotted cream, and Stilton cheese.
The new EU law recognises the high-quality nature of our product, and means that anyone who tries to imitate our brand can now be prosecuted. Our crystals have been legally recognised as unique – in texture, shape and taste, because of the quality of sea water they come from, and the process in which they are produced.
Alison Lea-Wilson, co-founder of Halen Môn, says, ‘this is brilliant news – not only for us, but for Anglesey, Wales and the UK. We are the 60th protected food name in the UK, and it is fantastic to be recognised in Europe.’