Experts meet in Cork to discuss future of food

The annual Guaranteed Irish Food and Drink forum took place recently in Cork and experts and industry leaders gathered to discuss what drives consumer purchasing decisions other than price. The panel featured representatives from Glenisk, Bord Bia, Matheson, Food Cloud and Musgrave and was sponsored by Supervalu and Centra.

Teresa Brophy, Senior Manager, Marketing at Bord Bia spoke about recent research showing that a range of quality marks are performing well, such as the Guaranteed Irish symbol and their own quality mark. She confirmed there are significant opportunities for accredited marks overseas. Over 57% of Guaranteed Irish businesses export, with Ballymaloe representatives saying that the G mark has helped them enter new markets abroad.

Panellist Kate Malone, Sales Manager at Glenisk explained why they chose to expand the use of the G on their growing range of products, citing the importance of supporting their local community and jobs and how the Guaranteed Irish licence supports this.

Giving an update on the EU Green Transition Directive, Kate McKenna, Partner with Matheson, spoke on new regulatory constraints which businesses are facing across the EU this summer, which will place greater emphasis on transparency, evidence-based claims, and consumers’ ability to challenge or make complaints about misleading advertising.

To help an up-and-coming Irish food or drink businesses, Guaranteed Irish has launched a €25,000 Advertising Competition in partnership with Supervalu, Centra and Elevate Media. This campaign will allow a member to advertise their product on digital screens across SuperValu and Centra stores nationwide.

Bríd O’Connell, CEO of Guaranteed Irish said: “As consumers become more conscious about where their food comes from and the impact their purchasing decisions have, accredited marks have never been more important. The discussion featured many angles including the Guaranteed Irish symbol and how it gives people confidence that they are supporting businesses committed to jobs, community impact and provenance here in Ireland.

“Initiatives such as our €25,000 digital advertising competition help Irish food and drink businesses grow their visibility and reach new customers. Thanks to our sponsors SuperValu and Centra who support us throughout the month.”