Lidl Ireland To Support 48 Producers As Part Of Kickstart Campaign

Lidl Ireland will support 48 Irish producers who have successfully earned a place on the retailer’s Kickstart supplier development programme .

The retailer has, to date, invested over €30 million in the initiative and supported over 250 Irish producers.

Following a competitive Dragons’ Den-style pitch process to find this year’s most innovative products, Lidl’s buying team selected 48 suppliers across 20 different counties, with products ranging from high-quality convenience food to beauty, baking and beers.

The successful producers will see their offerings sold across Lidl’s 220-store network from 19 September, for a limited time, while stocks last.

Before the products hit the shelves, the producers will take part in a six-month development programme, offering dedicated business support from Lidl’s in-house experts.

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Re-turn Reports 200 Million Containers Returned As Part Of DRS

Re-turn , the operator of Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) , today announced that Irish consumers have returned over 200 million containers since the start of the scheme, in February.

Since the start of June, an average of 2.9 million containers are being returned daily, showing a stark increase from the two million containers returned in the entire month of February.

As a circular-economy initiative, the DRS aims to move away from the ‘take, make and dispose’ culture to one of returning valuable materials and keeping them in the economy for as long as possible.

Through the DRS, aluminium cans can be recycled infinitely, while PET plastic bottles can be recycled multiple times.

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UK Inflation Back To 2% Target For The First Time Since 2021

British inflation returned to its 2% target on Wednesday for the first time since 2021, but underlying price pressures remained strong.

Despite data showing the 2% target has been reached, the Bank of England (BoE) is likely to wait before cutting interest rates.

While Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the BoE will welcome the fall in headline inflation, it will likely be too late to bolster Sunak’s popularity ahead of next month’s election or prompt a BoE rate cut on Thursday.

The Office for National Statistics data showed services price inflation, which the BoE thinks gives a better picture of medium-term inflation risks, was 5.7%.

That was down from 5.9% in April but not as big a drop as the 5.5% economists had forecast in a Reuters poll.

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Good Buzz – Ireland’s Top Five Energy Drinks

Whether it’s after a workout, powering through a study session, or just a midday revival, Sport/Energy Drinks are a favourite of Irish consumers.

The category has been on an upward trajectory on the Checkout Top 100 Brands category list over the past few years, leaping from 16th position in 2018 to 12th in 2019.

Sport/Energy Drinks retained that 12th position in 2020, moving up by six places, to sixth position, in 2021.

It held that spot the following year, stepping up one place again, to reach number five in 2023’s rankings.

We take a look at the top five brands in Ireland driving popularity, and giving consumers a pep in their step.

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