Taoiseach launches second Food Academy Start programme, creating 150 new jobs

Patels is one of participants in the second Food Academy Start programme, which will benefit nearly 200 Irish small food businesses in total

Nearly 200 Irish small food businesses will benefit from scheme which gives participants the chance to secure retail sales worth €5 million with SuperValu

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An Taoiseach Enda Kenny on 25 September launched the second Food Academy Start Programme at the National Ploughing Championships, encouraging start-up food producers to register for the programme. According to organisers, nearly 200 Irish small food businesses will benefit from the second Food Academy Start programme resulting in the creation of a further 150 jobs after the participants secure retail sales worth €5 million with SuperValu.

Food Academy Start is a joint initiative by Bord Bia, SuperValu and the Local Enterprise Offices to assist small food producers grow their business from start-up to their first retail listing through a workshop and mentoring system. Today, An Taoiseach Enda Kenny met some of the 85 graduate food businesses that have completed the Food Academy Start programme and as a result, secured their first retail listings with 133 SuperValu stores. These companies will continue to be supported by the Food Academy in order to further grow their sales and progress to become provincial and national suppliers.

SuperValu is able to afford the participating companies the unique position of starting their journey on a small scale, as a result of its community retailer model, whereby stores are independently owned. This allows store owners to source directly from local suppliers, allowing them to stock locally produced artisan foods that are not available in other supermarkets.

Commenting at the National Ploughing Championships, An Taoiseach Enda Kenny TD said: “The Food Academy Start programme is great news for the 200 small companies who will have a chance to participate and grow their business as the 85 companies here today can attest. I commend Bord Bia, SuperValu and the Local Enterprise Offices all over the country for collaborating on this important initiative which will create 150 jobs.”

Martin Kelleher, SuperValu managing director, added: “At SuperValu, we are committed to quality and supporting local suppliers – that’s why Food Academy, which gives small businesses a big start, is so important to us.”

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