Longford bakery, Panelto Foods, sign major deal with Lidl, valued at €22 million

Lidl has announced a new multi-million euro deal with Longford bakery, Panelto Foods, valued at €22 million. The new deal will bring their premium baked breads to Lidl stores across the island of Ireland and includes an export deal that will showcase their breads on Lidl shelves across more than 950 Lidl stores in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Lidl Ireland has also helped to facilitate a working relationship with Panelto Foods and the Lidl International buying team with hopes of supplying their premium Longford-baked goods to even more Lidl stores globally.

A key supplier to Lidl’s famous bakery, Panelto Foods opened their first bakery in Co. Longford in 2005. In 2011, they secured their first contract with Lidl Ireland suppling panini breads and now produce a range of Lidl’s much sought-after speciality rolls and sandwich breads. Since then, the 12-year partnership has evolved with the business seeing consistent growth during that time.

Product Innovation

Lidl Ireland were the first country in the Lidl global network to develop an in-store bakery and are now the first Lidl country to launch a premium range of fresh baked breads under their Deluxe own brand banner. Innovation is a key part of the successful partnership, with consumer insights, new product development and recipe generation top of the agenda. The new range is a delicious selection of carefully crafted breads, made by master bakers, using a slow fermentation technique, a stone baked oven and only the finest of ingredients. This high-quality range of loaves were designed and created specifically with Lidl customers in mind.

Land of Oats and Honey

Customer favourites exclusively developed for Lidl include the premium Sourdough Loaf, Rye Boule and unique Irish Oat & Honey Loaf. According to Pierre Delannoy, Master Baker at Panelto’s Innovation Centre “Working in partnership with Irish suppliers has allowed us to create something local and special which we are very pleased with. The Irish Oats & Honey loaf enjoys a delicious flavour of Irish oats and sweet honey. There is nothing out there like it.” While the Irish Oat & Honey Loaf is a little sweet, it still definitely qualifies as a bread – just with a softer crumb and delicious honey background flavour, particularly from the crisp crust. Elsewhere on the shelf, the starter used in Deluxe Sourdough Loaves contain friendly bacteria which are related to the well-known San Francisco sourdoughs, and provide a tangy, vibrant flavour. While many tastes are fresh and unique, ultimately, they are simple recipes with traditional techniques including long fermentation and stone baking for their distinctive look and taste.

Garry Walsh, Commercial Director, Panelto Foods stated that the partnership with Lidl over the past 12-years has contributed to the growth of Panelto Foods, which in turn has fuelled employment opportunities for the local communities of Longford. 

“Lidl has been a long-standing partner since 2011, and it has given us a huge opportunity to place our products on the plates of Lidl customers across the domestic and international market. With the support from the team at Lidl we continue to invest in innovation, creating new products that Lidl customers love.”

 Ciara Moran, Senior Buyer, Lidl Ireland and Northern Ireland said:

“Bringing quality premium products at affordable prices to our shoppers is at the forefront of what we do. This latest partnership with Panelto Foods amplifies the quality and success of their products with our customers here and abroad. Their commitment to product development demonstrates their passion to develop the highest quality products that our customers will love. We are delighted to be part of their journey to creating a premium product that we are thrilled to place in Lidl stores not just in Ireland but in stores across Great Britain and Northern Ireland.”

Lidl is proud to bring the best of Irish produce to its customers with its existing and ever-growing network of more than 400 Irish suppliers. Lidl has also invested more than €6 million to date in its annual Kickstart Supplier Development Programme, which gives small to medium Irish food and drink suppliers the chance to have their products sold in Lidl stores island wide.