Four Star Pizza partners with Ireland’s BWG Foodservice in multimillion euro supply deal

Four Star Pizza has partnered with BWG Foodservice, one of Ireland’s leading suppliers to the foodservice sector, in a multimillion euro deal over the next five years for the exclusive supply of all food ingredients to the expansive Irish-owned pizza group.

The new contract, will see BWG Foodservice, which is part of leading Irish wholesale and retail group BWG Foods, deliver an end-to-end supply solution across all categories spanning fresh food, ambient grocery, chilled and frozen products, packaging and other catering supplies.

Four Star Pizza currently operates 56 stores on the island of Ireland but only recently announced plans to increase that number to more than 100 over the next three years.

A key criterion of the contract award was BWG’s ability to supply premium, island of Ireland sourced produce across Four Star Pizza’s nationwide network and be a singlesource solution for their needs. As part of the partnership, BWG Foodservice will provide enhanced, value-added services to Four Star Pizza through the provision of category management resources, operations support and fresh-food advisory services.

Commenting on the contract win, Ricky O’Brien, BWG Foodservice Director said, “This contract with Four Star Pizza represents a very significant and unique addition to our business and we are delighted to have been selected as the company’s exclusive supplier.

“Our ability to deliver cost competitiveness through our consolidated supply network, our proven partnership model, our commitment to understanding our customer’s needs and our ability to deliver workable solutions were all key factors in securing this deal. Being at the forefront of foodservice distribution in Ireland, we believe we are the perfect partner to support Four Star Pizza’s future growth ambitions.”

Colin Hughes, CEO, Four Star Pizza added, “We have big ambitions and a strategy in place to continue growing our successful network of outlets across the island of Ireland, with a target of 45 new stores by 2025. We needed a partner that could match our ambitions and support us on every step of our journey. Securing local supply chain continuity amid the current challenges faced by the sector was a key aspect of the contract award and we are confident BWG Foodservice will help us deliver this.”

Bord Bia invests one million euro in beef promotions to support the industry

BORD Bia has announced a €1,000,000 investment in beef marketing across key UK and EU markets this autumn to support the sector faced with increasingly difficult trading conditions.

Bord Bia’s autumn promotional activities this year will specifically spotlight Irish quality assured steak in the UK, Germany, Italy and Belgium, with stewing cuts being the hero product in the Netherlands. Additional funding has been allocated to the campaign to deliver a suite of both trade and consumer advertising. Highlights include 110 prominent billboard advertisements across cities in the North-Rhine Westphalia region of Germany; 315 digital billboards near major retail parks in Belgium, and in Italy in addition to 185 billboards, 127 trams and buses across Milan, Rome and Bologna will feature quality assured Irish steak advertisements throughout October and November. In the UK, Bord Bia is promoting Irish steaks with key retail partners, including an organic Irish beef promotion with a leading online retailer.

Announcing the investment at the SIAL Paris trade show for the food sector, Bord Bia Interim CEO Michael Murphy said: “Bord Bia is investing almost one million euro in beef promotions across Europe and the UK this autumn in a concerted effort to meet the rising challenges of the market place and the cost of living crisis, which will impact consumer spending. During the summer, Bord Bia made the decision to enhance its regular autumn promotions in Europe to coincide with the peak in cattle slaughter in Ireland. We are conscious of the challenges faced by farmers and we believe this suite of promotional activities across key European countries and the UK will enhance sales of Irish beef steaks across markets.”