In 1935 it was decided to expand the mill and to put in an oatflaking facility. Oatflaking produced a finer flake, which is faster to cook. Since then, Flahavan's have gone from strength to strength, so that today Flahavan's Progress Oatlets is the leading porridge oats brand in Ireland. 

Today, the Flahavan's are the sixth generation to run the business - one of the last such family businesses in the country - with John Flahavan as Chairman of the company.

Flahavan's porridge has a distinctive texture and taste because all of the oats used in the making of Flahavan's are grown locally, chosen from a select panel of growers. The region around Kilmacthomas has it's own micro-climate, nestling beneath the shelter of the Comeragh mountains while also being relatively close to the sea. This means that the area does not get very cold winters, which gives a better quality oat grain.

Flahavan's also utilise a unique milling process in the plant which gives the product a special character in terms of texture and taste. The original Irish breakfast cereal, it is a totally natural product, which is not genetically modified in any way. Generations of our customers have been enjoying that taste for over 200 years.

History of Oats

"The cultivation of oats is particularly suited to Ireland's climatic conditions and therefore oatmeal became a staple food of the Irish from prehistoric times until the seventeenth century. Vast quantities of oatmeal were consumed in the form of porridge or stirabout (a thick mixture). 

With the introduction of the potato in the late sixteenth century, the prevalence of oatmeal porridge declined as potatoes superseded oats as the staple diet and only in times of poor potato harvest did it temporarily regain its pre-potato status. However, despite the prevalence of the potato, oats maintained a strong foothold in the national diet until well into the late nineteenth century.

Most households also held stores of oatmeal for the production of porridge, bread - and importantly - as an ingredient for the manufacture of black puddings. 

In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries oatmeal became increasingly popular when it was mixed with whiskey as a cure for the common cold. In this period porridge increasingly became a breakfast dish and this was promoted by the establishment of the commercial oatmeal producers, Flahavan's, in the eighteenth century. 

Despite the establishment of bacon and eggs as the "traditional Irish breakfast" in the nineteenth century, porridge still retained its place as a regular breakfast dish. The popularity of breakfast porridge is well illustrated in the culinary advice offered by George Bernard Shaw in his 1904 publication John Bull's Other Island :

"Boil oatmeal porridge for 20 minutes; and if you think the result mere oatmeal and water, try boiling it for two hours. (If you still think it as unpalatable as dry bread, treat it as you treat the bread; stir up a bounteous lump of butter in it, and do not forget the salt.) In eating oatmeal porridge, remember that there's nothing so becomes a man as moderation and an admixture of stewed fruit." 

Copyright: - Ireland's Traditional Foods - An Exploration of Irish Local & Typical Foods & Drinks by Cathal Cowan and Regina Sexton - Published by Teagasc- The National Food Centre, Dublin, 1997.

People at Flahavans

• Chairman: John Flahavan
• Director: Mary Flahavan
• Production Director: John Coffey
• Sales & Marketing Director: John Noonan
• National Account Manager: Margie Walsh
• Brand Manager: Dolores Whelan
• Finance Manager: Donal Nagle
• Quality Assurance Manager: James Beresford
• Quality Assurance Officer: Orla Sheehan
• Customer Services Manager: Kathleen Whelan
• Gift Scheme Administrator: Dolores Troy
• Sales/Orders Administrator: Vera Power
• Debtors/Systems Administrator: Siobhan Carberry
• Production Assistant: Elaine Lanigan