Navan firm in SuperValu supplier scheme

Minister for Trade and Commerce, Billy Kelleher, TD, officially launched the Government-supported 2010 Enterprise Ireland SuperValu Supplier Development Programme at a business breakfast in Cork. The programme is designed to support small or emerging food processing companies achieve the service standards, product quality and innovation necessary to achieve product listings on supermarket shelves. Among the participants is JM Foods, based in Navan, which provides hot meal solutions, ready meals and salads for the foodservice market. The Enterprise Ireland SuperValu Supplier Development programme has seen 16 Irish food companies, including Sunshine Juice, Dunhill Cuisine, Kohinoor and Fresh Cut participate in the scheme since its inception in 2005. To date, participants in the programme have recorded a collective €12m in direct sales to SuperValu. Minister Kelleher said: "The Enterprise Ireland SuperValu Supplier Development programme is a highly practical industry-led programme that has already opened doors for early-stage Irish food companies. "The food industry is one of our largest indigenous sectors and a key contributor to the Irish economy. Encouraging and supporting the creation of Irish food companies is a key priority for Enterprise Ireland and I am delighted to see a brand like SuperValu really get behind this initiative." Donal Horgan, managing director of SuperValu, said: "Supporting entrepreneurship is at the very heart of what we do. Across the country, our 191 SuperValu stores are owned and operated by independent retailers, who are each entrepreneurs in their own right, so this programme is very close to our hearts." He said the programme is an ambitious and innovative scheme, which has already borne fruit for both SuperValu and the companies involved. "To date, there has been around €12m worth of sales between us and the participant companies. "For them, this has obviously driven sales while, for us, we have found a number of excellent supplier partners who have each brought something different and better to our business. We are already excited by the potential of this year's participant companies." Frank Ryan, CEO of Enterprise Ireland, said the Supplier Development programme enabled small start-up food companies to fully understand the workings of the retail sector and the best approach to take in order for them to secure a listing with a retailer such as SuperValu. "For Enterprise Ireland, this is exactly the type of partnership we want to see between producers and retailers in the food sector and it is an important part of our strategy for the further development of the consumer foods sector," Mr Ryan said.