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Weekly Round Up, June 17, 2014

By Publications Checkout
Weekly Round Up, June 17, 2014

Mondelez Ireland has extended its sponsorship of Paralympics Ireland by three years, until March 2017. The extension will see the food company retaining the sponsorship well past the next Paralympic Games in 2016. Mondelez Ireland’s investment reflects their brand, Cadbury's previous sponsorship and continues on their legacy from the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Over the next three years Paralympics Ireland and Mondelez Ireland will collaborate to run annual talent and awareness events which will be supported by the Cadbury Foundation. “With Mondelez’s increased investment, we are confident of being able to build our partnership towards supporting our recently published strategic vision of leading a sector wide talent identification model,” said Liam Harbison, chief executive of Paralympics Ireland. Pictured are double Paralympic gold medallist Mark Rohan, swimmer Ellen Keane and footballer Gary Messett with Liam Harbison, CEO of Paralympics Ireland and Mondelez Ireland managing director, Justin Cook.

Coca-Cola has announced plans to launch a new variant in the UK, which it claims contains a third less sugar and a third fewer calories than standard Coca Cola. Coca-Cola Life is a sweetened with stevia and has enjoyed success in Chile and Argentina. The product will be introduced tot he UK in September, the first market in Europe. Coca-Cola has already used stevia as a sweetener in Sprite and its Glaceau vitaminwater. Commenting, James Quincey, president of Coca-Cola Europe, said, “With Coca-Cola Life, we have innovated to provide consumers with a new option with fewer calories. We were early signatories to the UK Government’s Responsibility Deal.”

IDA Ireland has launched ‘Connect and Invest - Dundalk’, which is the sixth phase of its digital marketing initiative for attracting inward investment by highlighting the specific attributes of individual regional urban centres. The initiative is designed as an interactive experience for use on tablet, smartphone and PC, which features. Commenting on the launch, Breda O’Toole, Regional Business Development Manager, IDA Ireland said “’Connect and Invest - Dundalk’ is an innovative digital marketing application that showcases the North East at its best. […] This new marketing tool will greatly assist us in conveying to clients all that the region has to offer. IDA looks forward to continuing to work closely with its partners in the region to promote the location as an attractive place for inward investment and job creation opportunities.”

Worldwide sales of Irish whiskey increased last year, despite a slowdown in the consumption of spirits across the globe. Data released by International Wine & Spirit Research show that global exports of Irish whiskey rose 10.1 per cent to 62 million litres in 2013, from 55.8 million a year earlier. Exports to the US, the biggest market for Irish whiskey, rose 17.9 per cent last year. Russia overtook France to become the third biggest market for Irish whiskey after the US and Ireland, with sales rising by 6 per cent last year. Sales in Russia have jumped by 21.3 per cent since 2008. Sales in France fell by 0.3 per cent but were up by 0.7 per cent in the UK, the fifth biggest market for Irish whiskey brands. Buoyed by such strong exports, over 15 new distilleries are currently being developed across Ireland.

The government has announced the introduction of the Consumer Rights Directive in Ireland, which aims to ban pre-ticked boxes, ban surcharges, ban hidden fees and charges and provide better cancellation rights for online purchases. Announcing the new directive, which is part of wider EU regulations, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton TD said, “Transactions involving a consumer on the one hand and a business on the other are inherently unbalanced, and government has an obligation to regulate where the consumer needs protection. The rapid growth of online trading poses particular challenges, and it is important that our laws evolve quickly to provide proper protections for consumers in these arenas. […] Irish consumers spend more than €4billion online every year, and this figure is projected to grow rapidly in the coming decade. The laws coming into effect today will make a major difference to the protections available to those consumers."

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Swizzels has launched a new range, Squashies, which features some of the company's favourite brand reformatted as soft sweets. Squashies come in Drumsticks, Refreshers, Love Hearts and Double Lollies flavours, and have no artificial colours. The new range is available in 45g bags from Supervalu, Centra, Londis, Spar, Mace, Costcutter and Topaz stores while 160g bags are available at Dunnes Stores across Ireland. The RRP is €0.50 for the 45g bag and €1.89 for the 160g bag.

Music groups including The 1975, Gary Lightbody and Peter Buck’s supergroup, Tired Pony, joined whiskey giant Bushmills last week for ‘Bushmills Live 2014’, held at the Old Bushmills Distillery on Ireland’s north coast. They were joined by rising stars James Vincent McMorrow, Luke Sital-Singh, David C. Clement, Matthew and the Atlas, Levity Breaks and Rubblebucket, performing before an intimate audience of 700 guests. Commenting, Master Distiller at the Old Bushmills Distillery, Colum Egan, said: “Bushmills Live 2014 was a great success.[…] The 1975 and Tired Pony were sensational and it was fantastic to continue to provide a platform to up-and-coming talent. The atmosphere backstage was like an old school reunion with so many friends of the festival in attendance."

Two new seafood product ranges have been launched by Flanagan’s Fish Merchants in Waterford City, with assistance from Bord Iascaigh Mhara’s (BIM’s) Seafood Development Centre in Clonakilty, Co. Cork. The renowned fish shop teamed up with BIM to produce a range of healthy pre-pack fish meals for families ('Catch Of The Day), as well as a barbecue-themed range ('Flanagan’s BBQ'). Flanagan's is operated by John Flanagan and his brother Brendan. Commenting on how BIM assisted the company with developing the new range, Aileen Deasy, Seafood Technologist, BIM, said: "What we can offer companies are the tools and expertise to bring their product ideas to life. We are very excited to see the new range available in the new fish shops and we are certain that everybody lucky enough to live in the South East will be enjoying these products for a long time to come."

Northern Ireland-based Henderson Foodservice has won a service contract to supply food and services to the Irish Prison Service. The company will now supply dry goods, including its 'Country Range', to all 14 prison sites throughout the Republic of Ireland in weekly deliveries. According to Damien Barrett, managing director of Henderson Foodservice, the deal was “extremely significant” for the company. “We were well-placed to win this contract as we have extensive experience in winning and managing similar business in the Northern Ireland market. It further strengthens our position in the Republic of Ireland as we seek to grow our business there." Henderson Foodservice has seen sales growth of 33% in the last two years and staff numbers have increased by 20% to over 250.

© 2014 - Checkout Magazine by Conor William O'Brien

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