33 new producers offer fresh Taste of Local

33 new Irish food and drink producers now have their products stocked in Super Valu stores as part of its innovative Taste of Local initiative.

They include four Cork businesses including OTOFU - who make tofu, Malay Kitchen - who produce Thai pastes and sauces, The Good Dairy Company - ice-cream and Kinsale Honey House who produce raw honey.

Launched last Thursday, all 33 small Irish food and drink producers have completed this year’s Food Academy programme and their products are available in the Taste of Local section in-store.

The launch comes as new research reveals 81% of people think it is important to buy Irish products.

The Taste of Local initiative also highlights hyperlocal products that are unique to local stores.

According to the new consumer research, the main reasons people buy Irish is to support local jobs (59%) and Irish businesses (54%). More than three-quarters of respondents (77%) said they agreed that the Covid-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of buying more Irish products. Some 77 per cent of respondents said they prefer to buy local whenever possible, while nearly two-thirds (64%) said they have made a conscious decision in the past 12 months to buy more Irish and local products.

The Food Academy programme, which is delivered in conjunction with Bord Bia and the Local Enterprise Offices, gives early-stage food and drink producers an opportunity to get their products on SuperValu shelves 52 weeks of the year. The programme has been an established part of the Irish food industry for nine years now and supports 1,500 jobs nationwide.

Currently, the Food Academy Programme supports 320 Irish food and drink producers. Food Academy producers achieved sales of over €30 million and 6% growth in the last year highlighting the continuous support from customers for local and Irish products. Food Academy producers have sold a combined €200 million of produce in SuperValu since 2013.

Carmel Biggane, Food Academy Manager at SuperValu, said: “Supporting local, Irish communities and businesses is at the heart of everything we do at SuperValu. Food Academy producers are delivering consistently high quality, great tasting products that are at the cutting edge of innovation. Producers are very finely tuned to the needs of today’s consumer and embody a fantastic entrepreneurial spirit to deliver exciting brands for the future.

“This year's new entrants have a wide range of products from plant-based offerings, organic produce, healthy convenience, sustainably foraged and harvested, as well as innovative non-alcoholic drink.”

Tara McCarthy, Chief Executive, Bord Bia, said: “Bord Bia is proud to be in partnership with SuperValu and the Local Enterprise Offices to deliver the Food Academy programme which enables small businesses to navigate through their initial growth phase. We believe that in a demanding trading environment growing companies’ skills and capabilities in consumer understanding, branding and business development provides them with a strong foundation.”

Padraic McElwee, chair of the network of Local Enterprise Offices added: “For small businesses in the sector, Local Enterprise Offices can help them start-up through the Digital School of Food and the Food Starter programme, get them ‘market-ready’ through the Food Academy programme and help them to grow even further through specific business training and mentoring.”

For more, see supervalu.ie/real-people/food-academy-programme.