SuperValu celebrates talented up-and-coming food producers with Taste of Local campaign

 press release

SuperValu celebrates talented up-and-coming food producers with Taste of Local campaign

Thanks Plants

Five products to hit the shelves across all stores on Thursday as part of wider commitment to growing Irish food industry

Five small Irish food producers have been selected for national distribution in over 150 SuperValu stores from this Thursday October 13^th, as part of the retailer’s innovative Taste of Local initiative.

Taste of Local is just one part of SuperValu’s long-standing commitments to Irish food and drink producers. Stocked in store 52 weeks of the year, the range is made up of Food Academy participants and hyperlocal products.

Irish Hedgerow

The five companies chosen as Guest Stars for nationwide distribution this year are:

• Thanks Plants, Co. Dublin
• Le Paysan, Co. Wicklow
• Roll It Pastry, Co. Meath
• Irish Hedgerow, Co. Tipperary
• My Apricot Kitchen, Co. Dublin

The Guest Star food and drink producers each bring something unique to the industry. They were chosen for nationwide distribution based on their success in the Food Academy programme. In recent years, there has been a huge emphasis on supporting Irish, with a study from SuperValu earlier this year revealing the vast majority (89%) of Irish people believe buying local products can help the environment.

Commenting on the nationwide launch of the five Guest Stars’ products, Carmel Biggane, Food Academy Manager, SuperValu, said:

“Supporting local Irish producers is at the heart of SuperValu’s ethos. We have Taste of Local products in all our stores, year-round and we are really excited for the five Guest Stars’ producers to go nationwide from October 13^th.

Le Paysan

The journey to get themselves on the shelves has been one of hard work and passion by the business owners. The growth they have demonstrated during the Food Academy programme has been inspiring and we at SuperValu are thrilled to be a part of their stories of growth and success.”

Food Academy is a unique food business development programme between SuperValu, Bord Bia and the Local Enterprise Offices. The programme provides invaluable guidance to small producers on supply chain, marketing, costing and other essential business knowledge and is exclusively for Irish producers. 

 

My Apricot Kitchen

The Food Academy programme supports 1,500 jobs in local communities nationwide with a survey of Food Academy members finding that 98% of participants feel that Food Academy has been “very beneficial” to developing their business, and 85% of participants expect to employ new staff over the next 12 months.

 

For more information on Food Academy visit https://SuperValu.ie/real-people/food-academy-programme.

This year’s five Taste of Local Guest Star Hero Products are available at over 150 SuperValu stores nationwide from October 13^th until November 2^nd.

 

Roll It Pastry