Gildernew attends Bramley Apple 200th Birthday Gala Ball

Minister Michelle Gildernew MP MLA, has joined the local apple industry in their birthday celebrations to mark 200 years of the Bramley apple.

Over 350 apple industry representatives and guests attended the black tie Gala Ball which was held in the Armagh City Hotel. The Ball was the culmination of a year of celebrations to mark the Bramley Apple Bicentenary organised jointly by the Fruit Industry Federation and the NI Fruit Growers Association. The Minister was welcomed to the Gala Ball by Sam MacNeice, chairman of the Fruit Industry Federation.

Speaking about the Bramley apple’s bi-centenary, the Minister said: "The Bramley Apple is now widely established and a highly valued fruit in the food market. I wish to thank the organisers for inviting me to attend the birthday celebrations for the Bramley which is an integral part of the local apple industry. It is also very heartening to see so many local apple industry representatives here and I have taken the opportunity to meet as many as I can."

The Minister added: "The organisation of this Gala Ball and indeed the Bramley Apple Fair held in May this year have both been great successes and to the industry’s credit.

"The planning and preparation of such excellent events can only be achieved by a high degree of co-operation within the industry. They reflect an industry showing foresight and endeavour in moving their sector forward. This is vital in today’s economic climate and globalisation of markets. I must congratulate you all on putting the Armagh Bramley apple firmly on the map."

Notes to editors:

1. Other guests at the Gala Ball included Celia Steven, great granddaughter of Henry Merryweather. He was the nurseryman who first cultivated the Bramley seedling in 1856 from cuttings taken from a tree belonging to Matthew Bramley in Nottinghamshire. This tree grew from pips planted in the garden by a young girl, Mary Ann Brailsford in 1809. The Bramley seedling was first brought to Armagh in 1884. The production of the Bramley spread and now virtually all apples grown locally are Bramley seedlings.
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