Marks & Spencer has pledged to the double the amount of Irish-produced food it stocks in its Irish stores.
A present, up to 20 per cent of food on sale in the British retailer’s Irish branches is home grown, a figure it wants to increase to 40 per cent.
The chain, which recently appointed Stewart Nisbet as head of its food division in Ireland, claims to have boosted sales of Irish products by 53 per cent over the last 12 months. He plans to develop further local supply networks with Irish farmers and producers.
“We are dealing with 20 or so local suppliers around the island at the moment,” said Nisbet. “We are identifying where the current product strengths are and plan to expand on these. We stock plenty of Irish potatoes and bigger suppliers are gearing up for more organic produce, as the market is driving this.”
Some of M&S’s biggest Irish suppliers include fruit supplier Keelings and Dublin Meath Growers.
“More concern about the environment is evident too. Irish farmers and suppliers produce high-quality products, and traceability is built into the Irish farming psyche. Combined, these make Irish products desirable to sell in our stores,” said Nisbet.
M&S opened its 15th Irish store in Tallaght, Dublin, last Thursday, and will open its 16th in Athlone in October. First-quarter sales in Ireland are up 14 per cent this year, and the retailer is seeking other sites for more stores at the moment.
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