Prinicipal Investigator: Prof Tim Guinee of Teagasc Food Research Centre Moorepark
Dairy Concepts IRL (DCI) is a consumer led, technology driven food R&D company. It has based its product development function and European manufacturing base at Teagasc Moorepark, Fermoy, whilefranchising manufacturing and distribution model will be employed for other international markets. Established in 2012 as a spin-out from Teagasc, DCI has an enduring collaborative relationship with the research institute. The company creates functional dairy snacks with global appeal using an innovative dairy platform technology developed at Teagasc. DCI has developed a "world-first" range of high protein, hand-held natural dairy snacks. DCI’s first product to market, Fruchee Friends, won Best Children’s Dairy Product at the prestigious 2017 World Dairy Innovation Awards where the judging panel deemed it an “entirely new product category”. DCI secured an agreement in 2017 with a leading multinational partner to distribute/market Fruchee Friends, which is key to securing large market share and reaching international markets and Fruchee Friends dairy bars have been launched in Ireland and the UK, in selected SuperValu and Tesco stores.The relationship has involved many channels, building from an early feasibility study into collaborative research, consultancy, pilot trials and IP licensing. According to Sales Director at DCI, Paul Simpson “The support from the TTO during the initiation of the collaboration and its formalisation into a feasibility study and then through negotiations of IP licenses and further collaborations was fantastic and a key enabler for us. It enabled a clear bridge between an academic and commercial organisation with ambitious commercial plans and allowed an outcome that was beneficial to both parties, while also key to building trust between the parties.”
Underpinning funding sources include: Enterprise Ireland, Dairy Levy, Industry Funding
TTO Support: Relationship Management, Contract Negotiation, Intellectual Property Protection, Licensing