West Cork suppliers win Lidl’s supplier awards

TWO West Cork Suppliers have been recognised in Lidl’s Inaugural Supplier Recognition Awards.

West Cork Distillers and Keohane’s Seafood have both been acknowledged for their outstanding sustainability efforts.

Keohane’s Seafood, a family run business based in Bantry, was recognised for Packaging Reduction Supplier of the Year.

Keohane Seafoods demonstrated a huge effort and determination to reduce its plastic packaging by 17.4 tonnes in 2021 alone.

Speaking about the award, Colman Keohane from Keohane’s said: “Developing and growing our business in the most sustainable way is a huge focus for us at Keohane’s. From sustainable sourcing through to reducing packaging as well as developing the most innovative packaging solutions we can. We are constantly looking to improve how we do business to future proof the natural resource that we depend on.

“We welcome this award from Lidl as a valued business partner and value the support they have given Keohane’s over the last 10 years, not only in helping us grow but in collaborating with us to grow sustainably.”

West Cork Distillers were recognised for Best Covid-19 Response by a Supplier for the pivotal role they played in the suppression of the Covid virus through the production and distribution of hand sanitiser.

They developed and packaged a 200ml bottle of hand sanitiser which was immediately made available to Lidl customers at an affordable price, being the first retailer in Ireland to do so.

John O’Connell from West Cork Distillers said: “We are a locally owned and operated company and this move allowed us to support our local community at a time of need. The agility that Lidl displayed in becoming our distribution partner showed that they trusted and backed our innovation and facilitated us ramping up production quickly to make sure we could make a real impact.”

Owen Keogh, Head of CSR, Lidl Ireland and Northern Ireland added: “We look forward to continued collaboration with our suppliers and industry experts to ensure we are setting the standard for sustainability in the sector and in doing so crystalising our commitment to providing a safe environment for our colleagues, to contribute positively to our communities and to be exemplary environmental stewards.”