Chilled Cabinet Archives - Ireland's Forecourt & Convenience Retailer

Lidl Ireland signs a new million-euro deal with Lakeland Dairies

Julie Nash — Sun, 04 Dec 2022 12:15:12 +0000

Lidl Ireland has announced a new contract extension worth more than €1 million with County Cavan based Lakeland Dairies. This new deal will see the Killeshandra based dairy Co-Op supply a core range of ice cream products including an exclusive festive Deluxe ice cream range to Lidl stores nationwide this Christmas. Lakeland Dairies currently supply an existing assortment of Irish butter and milk products to Lidl Ireland and Northern Ireland stores, worth over €18 million.

The latest deal expands the range of locally produced Irish ice cream products to 10. In addition to an increase of exports to selected Lidl stores in the Czech Republic alongside its already existing export of long-life milk to Lidl stores in Great Britain.

Emma Purcell, Buyer, Lidl Ireland. Pic. Robbie Reynolds

Since 2000

Lidl and Lakeland Dairies have been working together since 2000 when Lidl first arrived in Ireland. Lakeland Dairies is a farmer-owned dairy processing co-operative, made up of over 3,200 family run farms, with a heritage of excellence spanning over 120 years. With sustainability at the heart of the business, Lakeland farmers are constantly evolving farming and production methods to deliver on a strong history in producing the most sustainable, environmentally friendly dairy milk.

Lakeland Dairies currently have eight processing sites (four in Republic of Ireland and four in Northern Ireland). Supplying annually over 2 billion litres of quality fresh milk and cream used in products throughout Ireland and around the globe. The latest deal will see Lidl’s Ice Cream range sourced from the processing plant in Killeshandra, Co. Cavan, while their Irish Creamery Butter is sourced at the production facility in Co Monaghan and the supply of Flavoured Milk and UHT Milk from their plant in Newtownards Co. Down.

New deal

The new deal will see the addition of an exclusive Christmas Deluxe range of Ice Cream to Lidl stores nationwide, these will include:

Deluxe Brandy Butter Ice Cream with Brandy Sauce
Deluxe Irish Coffee Ice Cream with Whiskey Sauce
Deluxe Creme Liqueur Ice Cream
Deluxe Millionaire Ice Cream with Salted Caramel Sauce

Tommy O’Donoghue, Head of Consumer Foods, Lakeland Dairies and Emma Purcell, Buyer, Lidl Ireland.

Commenting on the contract extension and highlighting the new products, Emma Purcell, Buyer, Lidl Ireland said:

“Lakelands Dairy are a valued and trusted supplier of Lidl for many years, supporting our national supply chain with exceptional dairy products. Earlier this year, they won an award for ‘Responsible Sourcing in Raw Materials’ at our Lidl Supplier Recognition Awards for their introduction of Fairtrade cocoa into our product range. This amplifies their excellent track record on product quality and innovation making Lakeland Dairies a strong choice for us as we continue our drive to provide our customers with quality products and the best value for money. We are extremely proud to sign this latest deal and to launch our brand-new Deluxe Ice Cream range in stores nationwide and further afield through export to the Czech Republic. We are confident this new luxury treat will be a big hit this festive season.”

Lakeland Dairies’ processing facilities operate to the most stringent international standards of quality and sustainability including those governing Emissions and Integrated Pollution Control. The Co-Op is hugely proactive in managing and reducing packaging waste.

Ongoing partnership

Tommy O’Donoghue, Head of Consumer Foods, Lakeland Dairies said:

“We are delighted to expand our product range with Lidl and secure this latest deal. Through our ongoing partnership, and considerable investment from the team at Lidl, it gives us a huge opportunity to place our products in the homes of their customers across the domestic and international market. At Lakeland Dairies we pride ourselves on using only the finest dairy ingredients, working with over 3,200 Irish dairy farmers and supporting vital jobs in rural communities.”

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Kepak and Musgrave team up to supply new Angus beef range

Linda Stewart — Tue, 27 Sep 2022 09:52:10 +0000

Beef processor Kepak and wholesaler Musgrave MarketPlace have teamed up to launch the Butcher Prime Certified Irish Angus Beef Range.

As part of the partnership, the new range will be supplied to some of the best known restaurants in Ireland.

The Butcher Prime Certified Irish Angus Beef Range is noted for higher levels of marbling, which delivers a better taste and flavour.

The beef in the range is hand selected, hip hung and matured for 21 days, which also adds to the quality, Kepak said.

The range is accredited by the Certified Irish Angus Producer Group, which “ensures that quality and consistency of the beef”, and is guaranteed 100% Irish Angus beef through DNA traceability.

The range is also Bord Bia quality assured (QA) and sourced from Kepak suppliers around the country. The processor says these suppliers are “committed to the highest animal welfare standards and sustainable farming practices”.

The new offering marks almost 20 years of Kepak supplying beef products to Musgrave MarketPlace. Other brands and ranges supplied in that time include Butcher Select Brand, Butchers’ Prime Brand and Simply Meat Brand.

Commenting on the new range, Mel Bohan, Kepak commercial manager, said: “The Butcher Prime Certified Irish Angus Beef Range reflects the quality produce of our farmers.

“The new offering also reflects the success of an almost 20-year partnership between Kepak and Musgrave which we endeavour to build into the future.”

James Canavan, trading manager for Musgrave MarketPlace, said: “We are committed to ensuring the meat we deliver to our customers is 100% Irish and of the highest quality, with a strong focus on excellence from farm to fork.

“We look forward to continuing this partnership with Kepak in delivering world class meet to the tables of Irish restaurants,” Canavan added.

Caption: Chris Watson, Kepak; Christy Broe, meat specialist, Musgrave; Clement Pavie, chef, Musgrave; Robert Murphy, meat specialist, Musgrave; Jmes Canavan, trading manager, Musgrave; Mel Bohan, Kepak

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Glanbia Ireland and Glanbia Co-Op rebrand as Tirlán

Linda Stewart — Thu, 01 Sep 2022 09:09:42 +0000

The international food and nutrition business made the announcement at an event in Kilkenny. Tirlán is based on the Irish words ‘tír’ meaning land and ‘lán’ meaning full.

Tirlán’s portfolio include many of Irelands leading dairy brands including Avonmore, Kilmeaden and Premier as well as international brands such as GAIN animal nutrition.

As a co-operative, Tirlán is 100% farmer owned, has 11 high tech processing facilities, 52 agri-branches and over 2,100 employees.

It recently started construction of new continental cheese plant at Belview in Co Kilkenny.

Sales revenue for 2022 is forecast to exceed €3 billion and the company currently exports to over 80 countries.

Glanbia plc will continue to operate under the Glanbia name as a separate entity and Tirlán will continue to hold a 31.9% share of that company.

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Ór-Real Irish Butter to be sold across SuperValu and Centra stores

Linda Stewart — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 09:00:34 +0000

Ór-Real Irish Butter, which is produced by North Cork Creameries, is now available across the entire SuperValu network.

Due to its strong sales, the butter is also being rolled out to Centra stores across the country.

Ór-Real Irish Butter is produced by North Cork Creameries, which was established in Kanturk in Co Cork in 1928.

North Cork Creameries has been making butter for almost 100 years using summer milk from local, certified grass-fed cows. Ór-Real Irish Butter is made using the traditional method of slow churning and the only addition is a pinch of salt.

The farmer owned independent cooperative employs more than 100 local people directly. It supports 250 local family farm milk suppliers and contributes significantly to the local economy.

Its revenues increased by 16% in 2021 to just over €155m. The co-operative processed 226 million litres of whole milk last year and produced 17,580 tonnes of butter.

Pat Sheahan, CEO of North Cork Creameries, said the co-op has strong ambitions to grow Ór-Real Irish Butter.

“There is a real appetite for quality, natural products and we’re seeing a resurgence in the demand for real Irish butter,” Mr Sheahan said.

“We’re in a unique position in North Cork with the right amount of rain and ideal soil profiles to enable us to produce the highest quality milk from grass-fed cows. We thrive on tradition and use our generations of expertise to turn the finest local milk into butter,” he said.

“We also know our farmers and their farms really well and they believe in sustainable farming. Our farmers, their families and our locality are all part of what makes Ór-Real Irish Butter special,” he added.

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Danone tightens product range to reduce costs

Linda Stewart — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 09:47:20 +0000

French food giant Danone is cutting the variety of products it sells to retailers to cut costs, Reuters has reported.

Supermarkets and the makers of packaged food are struggling to combat rising costs, and soaring inflation also means shoppers are tightening their belts.Earlier this year, some food stores were forced to take products off shelves because they could no longer afford to sell them.

Those factors are prompting one of the world’s top food manufacturers to rethink how it sells its best-selling products which range from Activia yoghurt and Evian water.

“Inflation is a dynamic, particularly in Europe, that we need to start to get used to,” Ayla Ziz, Danone’s global head of sales, said.

The company is cutting back on so-called “stock keeping units” (SKUs), meaning that some supermarkets will have fewer variations of Danone products when it comes to flavours and sizes, she said.

Having fewer SKUs would help cut costs per type of product, she said, adding that Danone was reviewing its “entire portfolio” with every customer to see which SKUs it wants to discontinue.

Consumer companies like Danone make many versions of the same product – from big and small tubs of the same yoghurt to different flavours and value packs.

Simplifying its range means some of these could be sacrificed to make it cheaper for retailers to stock and manage a smaller, less complex inventory.

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