IFCR talks to Moira FitzGerald, the recently appointed Head of Sales for Nestlé Ireland.

Nestlé is the world’s largest food and drinks company. As the proud parent to over thousands of FMCG brands across the globe – its position in the Irish market is indisputable. With the nation’s favourite brands – from KitKat to Bakers, Nescafe to SMA – across seven product categories, and a factory in Limerick where it employs just under 800 people – it’s an impressive company to be a part of.

It’s no surprise then that Moira FitzGerald, with an impressive back story in FMCG and marketing, was delighted to join Nestlé Ireland as Head of Sales in January 2021.

With almost 20 years’ experience within the food and drinks industry, Moira has a proven track record of driving business performance cross category. Moira joined Nestlé Ireland from her previous role as Sales Director with Mars Ireland, where she led the commercial strategy across chocolate, gum, pet care and food categories. Prior to that she held positions such as Marketing Director at Mars, and Wrigley Business Director.

Strong market share

“I was delighted to join Nestlé, the world’s largest food company with such an extensive suite of brands, after 19 years at Mars. Nestlé has a strong market share across many different categories including beverages, confectionery, nutrition and pet food and the forecourt and convenience sector is very important to the company”.

“One of our key priorities is to continue to support the forecourts and convenience stores in Ireland as we come out of lockdown and see recovery in these channels” explained Moira.

“Globally there are over two thousand brands in our portfolio. Over 35 of those brands are in the billion-dollar region – and Ireland contributes to that global brand success.”

Head of Sales

Moira speaks with enthusiasm on her new role. “Nestlé Ireland has a fantastic team of sales’ people working directly with customers to drive category growth. Part of my role is to build a long-term sales strategy – which I’m really excited about” said Moira, who clearly thrives in the sales and marketing driven environment.

Extensive experience

Moira combines her extensive experience in FMCG sales and marketing with a Masters of Business Studies from Dublin Institute of Technology and is a graduate of Waterford Institute of Technology with a Bachelors in Business Studies, specialising in marketing.

While she develops and oversees the over-arching sales and marketing strategy, she has specific sales teams who manage each of the categories for Nestlé Ireland.

“Ireland and the UK as a unit is a very important market for Nestlé. We develop the strategy together – then my team implement the strategies in the market with our customers that in Ireland” said Moira.

Sustainability is key

Sustainability is an increasingly important theme for food manufacturers, how is Nestlé managing this issue across its portfolio?

“Sustainability is key and massively important to our overall global business,” said Moira. “We are a good food, good life company – we respect the planet and want to protect resources for future generations. As a multi-national with a growing emphasis on sustainability, we are reducing our impact on the environment. Sustainability is important to each and every brand – and to the company as a whole.

“In 2013 Nestlé made a commitment to make its packaging 100% recyclable or reusable by 2025, to reduce plastic by one third, and to advance the circular economy.

“For example, KitKat – a world renowned brand and a big favourite in Ireland – has committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2025 by reducing emissions generated through the sourcing of its ingredients, the manufacturing of the product and its distribution by more than 50% as part of the plan.  Smarties packaging is 100% recyclable. These are big ambitions, but we are totally committed to this and a lot more by embracing the Paris Agreement to limit climate change to 1.5 degrees centigrade.

“Nestlé is one of the companies to publicly release its plans to do this by 2030. This is great work and hugely ambitious.

Corporate social responsibility

Corporate social responsibility is also increasingly important. Moira outlined how Nestlé fulfils its CSR function for communities in Ireland – and is particularly proud of the company’s activities.

“Nestlé has operated in Ireland for over a hundred years – and during that time we have placed significance on how we play a positive role within our local communities and at a national level. From 2019 to 2021 Pieta was voted by our staff as its nominated charity. Over €100,000 was raised over a three year partnership to improve mental health services.

“Since 2010 Nestlé has contributed significantly to Jack & Jill, Irish Autism Action and Down Syndrome Ireland.  As well as Dublin and Cork Simon Community.

“We supply all the coffee – at this point over 3.5 million cups of Nescafe as well as KITKATs to the users of the Simon community. For many people in a homeless crisis, that cup of coffee and KITKAT is the first point of contact with Simon.  We are proud to support their work for over a decade now.

“For our pet care division, Purina, we have a close working relationship with the DSPCA – donating over 160 thousand meals for the cats and dogs in their care. Again, an important long-standing relationship for us as a business where we strive to be a positive force for good.”

Huge portfolio

With such a wide-ranging portfolio (2,000 brands) across the grocery sector, what would your aspiration be for your extensive brand portfolio in Ireland – and how will you achieve this?

“Our focus is on our core brands – driving forward innovation to rejuvenate brands to delight our consumers and create a new interest in our brands. New Product Development is equally important, in line with consumer trends. We will see more plant based, meat free alternatives and new categories. I’m very excited about this space – the huge trend towards meat free is currently quite dynamic and we see significant potential there.”

Key messages

Nestlé is crucial to the Irish grocery sector, so what are the key messages for IFCR readers?

“The company is a key player in the grocery sector and from the consumer perspective – people know and trust our brands. We will continue to invest in our brands and bring new innovation to the market across all our categories in the coming years.

“In addition, we want to continue to work with forecourt and convenience stores to provide the optimum range and layouts for our categories and help them deliver continued sales.”

Personal vision

From a personal perspective, while thrilled to be joining a tremendous company that really ‘walks the talk’, Moira emphasises that Nestlé respects and supports its people significantly and no more so than during the past year when the workplace has changed for everyone.

“Diversity and inclusion are important to me – and it’s encouraging to see these integral values brought to life and lived by everyone in the company in Ireland – it features in everything we do as a business and as a team.

“We were delighted and proud to be only the second ever Irish company to receive the Investors in Diversity Gold Award from the Irish Centre for Diversity.

From a personal perspective – Nestlé has a very bright future, I am thrilled to have joined the team and I hope to make a positive impact on the business and the people I work with in the coming years” said Moira.

“As business grows so will the people – we surround ourselves with the right core values, and as a result, make a positive impact on the business.

“Sustainability and nutrition important part of the agenda for the future

Closing comments

“Data and insights are key for the future. As a business we are insight driven and we are constantly seeking to gain deeper understandings of what consumers are thinking, what’s influencing their purchase choices – all this provides us with a wealth of information about consumer trends now and into the future.  It is means we can and do provide those product solutions at a time and place for shoppers”

“There has been massive development in the range and sophistication of forecourts in Ireland – it’s a particular impressive and important channel – where Nestlé will continue to develop relationships and provide support.”

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The new Nescafé Gold Iced Cappuccino, boasting an authentic taste of a Cappuccino, and the Nescafé Gold Iced Latte Salted Caramel, a deliciously milky coffee with a hint of salted caramel flavour, have both been expertly crafted to be enjoyed cold.

Both coffees have been made with carefully selected ingredients, including the finest coffee beans, for a delicious coffee taste, topped with a generous velvety foam.

Carol Anne Deasy, Beverages Marketing Manager, Nestlé Ireland said:

“We are very excited to launch the new iced range of Nescafé Gold ready for the summer. We have seen a huge growth in the popularity of iced coffee in cafés and coffee shops as people look for a delicious, refreshing iced frothy coffee on the go. With our new launch, coffee fans will be able to enjoy a mouth-wateringly delicious, coffee-shop style iced coffee at home! No matter where you are, it’s easy to take some time out and savour the aroma and refreshing taste of your favourite iced coffee.”

The new Nescafé Gold Iced coffees will be available in perfectly portioned, convenient sachets and can be made at home in seconds just by adding cold water and ice for an ice cold, rich refreshment on a lazy summer’s afternoon.

And what’s more, with 53 kcal in Iced Latte Salted Caramel and 57 Kcal in Iced Cappuccino per cup and low fat content, cold coffee fans can enjoy the indulgent taste of iced coffee, without the guilt.

The new Nescafé Gold Iced range is rolling out to major retailers over the coming weeks.

Nescafé is the world’s favourite coffee brand, enjoyed in more than 180 countries worldwide. More than 5,500 cups of Nescafé coffee are consumed every second with different varieties catering to different tastes and preferences around the globe.

Nescafé coffee has been grown, made and packaged in a way that respects the environment and the people who farm the coffee beans.

Coffee beans for Nescafé products are sourced responsibly through the Nescafé Plan, the world’s largest coffee sustainability programme, which is now active in 20 countries. Over the past ten years, the Nescafé Plan has worked to make the farming and production of coffee for Nescafé products more sustainable while improving the lives of farmers and the economic and social development of their communities.

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Nestlé says it wants to concentrate on its biggest brands, with the modernisation of its York and Halifax sites allowing it to produce 500,000 more Kit Kat products a day, according to a report by The Grocer.

It appears there are no immediate plans to rationalise the range and cut other, less successful lines, the future of many of the 200 products currently produced at the factory is uncertain.

The Fawdon factory produces many of what Nestlé calls its “smaller, low-growth brands”, such as Rolo, Munchies and Fruit Pastilles. Production will now be split between Halifax and other European sites. These popular lines will continue, the closure of Fawdon could signal the prioritisation of fewer, but bigger, brands by the corporate giant.

Nestlé’s three fastest-growing brands in 2020 were Aero, Kit Kat and Smarties. They shot up £22.8m, £14.1m and £7.6m respectively [NielsenIQ, 52 w/e 26 December 2020].

Other smaller brands like Lion, Quality Street, Yorkie and Dairy Box saw a slump in sales. Nestlé has concentrated innovation efforts on the big-hitters. In the past year, the vegan Kit-Kat has been launched – KitKat V. A dark chocolate version of Aero also appeals to the vegan market, as Nestle explores new customer trends.

Many of these big brand names are part of the public consciousness –  Rolos, Munchies, Fruit Pastilles, Fruit Gums and Matchmakers are all much loved brands, although they are not as high-profile as the Kit Kat.

While the 600 UK jobs under threat, many will also be hoping Nestlé doesn’t focus on big brands to the detriment of its smaller lines. Meanwhile in Ireland, Nestle appears to be continuing to flourish, with no indication of any change (at the time of writing).

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New sharing bags will use on average 15% less packaging – saving 83 tonnes of virgin plastic every year

Nestlé in the UK and Ireland has redesigned its confectionery sharing bags to use significantly less packaging – a move that will see at least 83 tonnes of virgin plastic taken out of its supply chain every year.

From April, some of the nation’s favourite treats, including Milkybar, Aero Bubbles, Munchies, Rolo, Yorkie, and Rowntree’s Randoms will come in new narrower pouches. Nestlé sells approximately 140 million confectionery sharing bags in the UK and Ireland every year; this change will save almost 1 million square metres of packaging – equivalent in area to 131 football pitches.

Reducing virgin plastic

Cheryl Allen, Head of Sustainability for Nestlé Confectionery said: “Nestlé is working hard to reduce its use of virgin plastic by one third by 2025. Removing 15 per cent of the packaging from our sharing bags is an important step towards this goal. The move will not only save on the amount of virgin plastic we use each year, it will have significant benefits throughout our supply chain in the UK and Ireland.

Fewer lorries

“For example, we can now pack more sharing bags at a time, which means fewer lorries are needed to transport them. In total, we will be able to take the equivalent of 331 lorries off UK roads every year, saving 71472 road miles and 130 tonnes of CO² emissions.^”

Recycling

Alongside reducing the amount of packaging used, Nestlé is also making it easier to recycle plastic wrappers which are not currently collected at kerbside. Its partnership with TerraCycle³ gives consumers the ability to recycle confectionery wrappers now, while changes in technology and infrastructure are being worked on. Flexible plastic packaging can be dropped off at around 300 TerraCycle recycling points across the UK and Ireland.  The waste is sent to a specialist recycler, where it is turned into plastic pellets that can be used to manufacture new products such as outdoor furniture  and storage boxes, meaning the wrappers recycled this way won’t end up as landfill or litter in the environment.

Flexible Packaging Consortium

Nestlé has also joined the Flexible Packaging Consortium with Ella’s Kitchen, Mars and Taylors of Harrogate, working with waste and recycling experts SUEZ. The consortium recently released a new report providing recommendations to increase flexible packaging recycling in the UK.

Further initiatives Nestlé is undertaking as it works to make all its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025 include:

• Making all  Smarties packaging paper-based, removing approximately 250 million plastic packs sold worldwide every year.
•  Investing up to £1.6 billion globally to lead the shift from virgin plastics to food-grade recycled plastics and to accelerate the development of sustainable packaging solutions.
• Signing up to the European Plastics Pact. The Pact will help Nestlé achieve 100% recyclable or reusable packaging and reduce the use of virgin plastics by one third by 2025.
• Creating an Institute of Packaging Sciences to evaluate and develop various sustainable packaging materials and to collaborate with industrial partners to develop new packaging materials and solutions.
• Moving the full range of Buxton Natural Mineral Water to 100% recycled plastic (rPET), while remaining 100% recyclable, by the end of 2021.

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Kieran Conroy has over 20 years’ experience in the FMCG and pharma sectors. He has held a variety of senior management and leadership roles in Nestlé UK & Ireland. He previously held the position of head of sales, becoming a director of Nestlé Ireland whilst also sitting on the Nestlé UK & Ireland sales leadership team. With a background of senior roles in sales, category and brand management within the FMCG and retail pharmacy sector, Conroy has been with Nestlé for over 13 years, joining as a customer business manager while during his career he also served as country category manager for Purina Ireland.

“It is a very exciting time to take responsibility for leading the Nestlé business in Ireland at the world’s largest food & beverage company,” Kieran Conroy said of his new role.

“I am excited to continue to work closely with our world-class team based in Citywest, together with our valued customers, to delight our consumers with our amazing brand propositions such as Nescafé, Starbucks, KitKat, Smarties, Felix, Bakers, SMA and Carnation,” he added.

“I am equally passionate about working with all of our stakeholders to, progress the nutrition, health and wellness agenda in Ireland and deliver our sustainability objectives including our global ambition to half carbon emissions by 2030.”

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