Guaranteed Irish focus on sustainability

Owen Keogh, Head of Sustainability at Musgrave; Brian Murphy, Partner Lead, Best Managed Companies Programme and Audit & Assurance Partner, Deloitte; Emma Walls, Commercial Director at Glenisk; and Fiona Twomey, Global Retail Specialist, Bord Bia.

Reducing carbon footprint

‘CRACKING Sustainability in the Face of Rising Costs’ was the title of an event organised by Guaranteed Irish, which focused on the very real benefits to retailers, brand owners and consumers of adopting a sustainable agenda.

Three recent independent surveys carried out by Guaranteed Irish, SuperValu, and Bord Bia show that the Irish public are consciously supporting local brands, which is good news for local business and the environment.

At the ‘Cracking Sustainability…’ event, which was sponsored by SuperValu and Centra, Fiona Twomey of Bord Bia announced the results of their recent survey, which found Irish consumers remain committed to supporting locally produced food. Almost two in three buy local produce on a weekly basis, and over half expect to increase their frequency of purchase of local produce in the next six months.

The expert panel of speakers at the event in Cork included

Research carried out by Red C for 2023 confirmed that 79% of consumers who bought from Guaranteed Irish businesses believe they are supporting a sustainable economy, with 69% agreeing that buying from Guaranteed Irish businesses helped reduce carbon footprint.

A survey by SuperValu in May this year showed that 99% of shoppers buy Irish products, while 83% would be influenced to buy a product that displays the Guaranteed Irish ‘G’ symbol.

The most recent survey by Bord Bia showed that consumers are more intent on buying Irish products to support local businesses than ever.

A collective effort

Owen Keogh, Musgrave Group, Head of Sustainability, said Musgrave has invested in sustainability over many decades: “I am delighted to see so many of the Guaranteed Irish members also committed to making their businesses and products more sustainable. By harnessing our collective effort, we can really accelerate the progress made in the Irish food and drinks sector.”

Emma Walls from Glenisk said that her company’s focus on