Lidl Northern Ireland said the new £9 million store marked a significant investment in the local area.

Prominently located adjacent to Rushmere Shopping Centre, with direct access off Central Way, the 2,467 sqm store will replace Lidl’s existing Balteagh Road branch, and has been developed to the highest specification, featuring innovative technology, a customer-first sales floor and sustainable design.

Representing a 23% increase on the previous store footprint, the new site will offer shoppers an enhanced in-store experience, as well as the convenience of a prime location next to Northern Ireland’s largest shopping complex, which welcomed more than 10.5 million customers in 2025.

Lidl Northern Ireland’s investment will see the creation of 12 new retail jobs for the local community, bringing the total team employed at Lidl’s Craigavon store to 40. The project also saw over 150 jobs created as part of the planning and construction process.

Developed with sustainability at the fore, Lidl’s Craigavon store will incorporate energy efficient features, including LED lighting, heat pumps and PV solar panels, thereby reducing carbon emissions and supporting Lidl’s ambition to achieving net-zero by 2050.

“This significant investment will deliver a modern, sustainable and innovative shopping experience, with a sales floor almost a quarter larger than our previous site,” said Regional Managing Director for Lidl Northern Ireland Gordon Cruikshanks.

“This will allow us to offer customers an enhanced product range, including locally produced goods, firm Lidl favourites, and our ever-popular middle aisle products.

“We are also proud to continue supporting local employment, with 12 new roles created as part of the development, bringing our dedicated Craigavon team to 40 colleagues. We look forward to welcoming both familiar faces and new customers to experience the new store for themselves this summer.”

Actor and Craigavon native Owen James – best known for his roles in Blue Lights, Hope Street, and Say Nothing – will cut the ribbon on opening morning, ready to welcome shoppers to Lidl Northern Ireland’s new store, in time for the school holidays.

The store will open at 8am on Thursday 18^th June, with the local community invited to enjoy the opening day celebrations. The first 10 customers in the queue will receive a Lidl store voucher.

The post Lidl NI announces opening date for £9m concept store in Craigavon first appeared on Neighbourhood Retailer.

Drawing inspiration from both kinship and its island identity, Kinisla is the new corporate identity for the former Kerry Dairy Ireland. Marking a significant new chapter for the company, the new name reflects its deep connection to its people, farming heritage and Irish roots while also signalling a bold, outward-looking future.

The rebrand follows a landmark year for the business, after Kerry Co-Operative Creameries acquired a 70% shareholding in Kerry Dairy Ireland in 2025, marking the beginning of its transition towards a fully farmer-owned co-operative model by 2035 and reinforcing Kinisla’s commitment to supporting farmers and securing the future of high-quality Irish grass-fed dairy.

“This is a hugely exciting time for us, as we mark an important milestone for the business,” said Tim.

“We are proud to reveal our new corporate identity which reflects our heritage and our bold ambitions for the future. Our new name signals our commitment to putting people back at the heart of the business: the dairy farmers who supply our grass-fed milk and the consumers who buy our brands.

“Powered by people and shaped by the land, at Kinisla we are laser-focused on creating and supplying high-quality products that deliver on what consumers really want. This investment will turbocharge our innovation pipeline, strengthen our supply chain and support our ambition to reimagine dairy and inspire what’s next for the category.”

As Tim explained to NR, it was important to involve employees and stakeholders in contributing to the new identity.

“We have taken our time to do this and we have launched with a name that everyone within the business and hopefully our stakeholders and customers all identify with,” added Tim.

“Our new name comes at a time when we are returning to majority ownership bringing us closer to our incredibly important farmer co-operative base.

“The business is performing well and we are moving forward in a position of strength and the new identity celebrates that. It speaks to the two aspects of our business – the kin or our people and the land – the beautiful island that fuels our dairy. Leaning into our rich heritage and our bold plans for future growth.”

With the roots of the company spanning five decades and employing 270 people in Northern Ireland, Kinisla is well known for its market-leading brands including: Golden Cow and Coleraine as well as Strings and Things’ Cheestrings. The company’s core brands, which are well known and trusted by consumers, are also a reflection of the passion to drive innovation that meets ever-changing consumer demand.

“It is very important for us to have a strong relationship with local farmers and suppliers. It’s fundamental to our business and supply chain as it allows us to focus on elevating diary and creating higher value products that consumers want. Our burgeoning snacking business and nutritional ingredients division are the two main priority growth areas for us,” said Tim.

As part of its long-term growth strategy, the business is launching a €300m five-year investment plan across its Consumer Foods and Nutritional Ingredients business divisions.

The investment will fuel growth by supporting manufacturing innovation, operational scale and sustainability initiatives aimed at reducing Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, while creating more than 100 new roles across central functions, innovation and commercial operations over the next 12 to 24 months.

“We have announced the investment programme allowing for us to invest for the future. I have outlined the two growth areas, but particularly relevant for Northern Ireland is consumer foods and continuing to deliver innovative dairy based products,” said Tim.

READ THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH TIM GAULT IN THE MAY ISSUE HERE

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The warnings, which come from specialist convenience insight agency, Talysis, state that the independent convenience sector will be hit with additional cost pressures, at an already challenging time.

Earlier this month, Exchange For Change, the industry-led organisation delivering the scheme across Northern Ireland, England and Scotland, announced a package of targeted support for retailers.

The DRS regulations allow for retailers in urban areas with a retail footprint of less than 100m² to be automatically exempted from operating a return point for DRS items. However, Exchange For Change has agreed an extension of the exemption criteria with regulators in all three nations, allowing for retailers with a sales area of between 100m² and 199m² in urban settings and rural retailers with less than 200m² of sales area to apply for a size-based exemption.

Further exemption allowances have also been agreed on the basis of proximity, heritage or listed building restrictions, site access or lack of access to utilities.

In addition, Exchange For Change is making available £60m in grant funding to help up to 10,000 small, independent retailers meet the cost of installing Reverse Vending Machines (RVMs) across England, Northern Ireland and Scotland.

Grants of £6000 will be made available per site to qualifying small, independent retailers in three annual payments of £2000, which will be funded three months after the installation of a Reverse Vending Machine (RVM).

Meanwhile, in consensus with recent comments by the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS), Clarity by Talysis data has indicated that stores face a near 30-year break-even term if they achieve a 90% return rate and install a Reverse Vending machine.

REVERSE VENDING MACHINES

The figures are based on a conservative minimum operating cost and average sales of applicable SKUs across the UK’s independent convenience sector. Even at a 100% return rate, the recently announced 5p per container return handling fee results in a payback term of 15 years. For context, one year on from the launch of DRS in Ireland, stores were achieving an 88% return rate, versus a five-year target of 90%.

While the government grants of £6,000 per store will be available for smaller stores, to assist with the cost of installing an RVM, Talysis reports this funding is limited to 10,000 stores and stores would still face a 9-year break-even term based on 100% return rate and 18 years at 90% returns.

Whilst stores have an option of purchasing/leasing an RVM if their sales justify the outlay, the alternative is for manual handling of returns. The reduced handling fee of 3p per container is required to cover increased staffing, hygiene and storage costs, raising questions over whether even this option leaves retailers in a cost-neutral position.

Ed Roberts, MD of Talysis Ltd said: “I’m sure all parts of the supply chain would like to participate in the scheme and do their bit to help the environment. Plus, it could prove to be an essential footfall-driver for local stores and help deliver a circular economy.

“Whilst it seems that the UK is keen to encourage the use of RVMs rather than manual returns, as the handling fees are the opposite way round and at a higher level to Ireland, this support still doesn’t go far enough towards the costs involved.

“Retailers who opt for a reverse vending machine to minimise staff involvement, hygiene concerns and storage issues face an almost impossible break-even situation. Meanwhile, those who choose to do manual returns will be affected by those aspects, which may in turn put them into a loss-making position.

RETURN HANDLING FEE

“For a sector that’s already dealing with multiple challenges, it appears that the DRS might be a bridge too far for many retailers. It’s quite possible that unless the Return Handling Fee is increased, especially for smaller stores, a high proportion of retailers may simply apply for exemption from the scheme.”

The package of support for retailers follows the announcement of the Return Handling Fee (RHF), which has been structured into tiers to take account of the diversity in the UK’s retail landscape: manual return points – 3p per container; automatic return points: Tier 1 – 5p per container, up to 225,000 in-scope items returned annually; Tier 2 – 1.3p per container, for annual in-scope returns in excess of 225,000.

Russell Davies, Exchange For Change CEO said: “Retailers will play a fundamental role in transforming how we increase recycling and reduce litter in every corner of the UK through the Deposit Return Scheme.

“This package of support has been developed following extensive consultation with industry and intended to help retailers of different sizes make the best choice for their business, whether that’s installing an RVM or applying for an exemption.

“Together with the Return Handling Fee, the extension to exemptions and the provision of grants for small, independent retailers is another significant milestone in our work to deliver a scheme that is fair for business and accessible and easy to use for all consumers.”

The post Additional cost pressure warning for independent retailers with DRS first appeared on Neighbourhood Retailer.

Coming together to remind everyone that there can be no justification for attacks on people, property and communities, they have stressed that such actions undermine the values of respect, inclusion and mutual understanding that are essential to a peaceful and prosperous society.

“Northern Ireland’s economy and public services depend on people from many backgrounds who have chosen to live and work here,” read the statement.

“Migrant workers make a vital contribution across every sector of our economy, including health and social care, hospitality, manufacturing, construction, agri-food, retail and professional services. Their skills, commitment and entrepreneurship help sustain businesses, strengthen public services and enrich our communities.

“Northern Ireland has worked hard to build a reputation as a welcoming place to live, work, visit and invest. Images of violence and division risk damaging that reputation at a time when we are seeking to attract tourists, international talent, investment and raise living standards. Such incidents create unnecessary harm to local communities.”

They added that as representatives of the business community, they believe future prosperity depends on creating a society that is open, inclusive and welcoming to all.

“We reject attempts to sow division and fear, and we stand with all those who are working to promote respect, safety and community cohesion.

“We urge everyone to reject violence, support the rule of law and work together to ensure Northern Ireland remains a place where all people are treated with dignity and respect.”

The statement was signed by groups including CBI Northern Ireland, Dairy Council NI, Employers Federation Northern Ireland, Federation of Small Businesses Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Food and Drink Association, Northern Ireland Hotels Federation and Northern Ireland Retail Consortium.

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The meeting took place on Thursday 4^th June, following growing concern among UFU members about the future of pig supply into the company’s Cookstown site.

UFU deputy president Clement Lynch said the meeting was direct and necessary, but that affected farmers now need clear answers in writing.

“Pig producers are facing huge uncertainty, and for many of these family farms this is not simply a commercial inconvenience; it is about the future of their business,” said Mr Lynch.

“At the meeting, UFU made it very clear to Sofina that producers need answers on how many farmers are affected, what notice has been served, what criteria were used, and what the company’s long-term plan is for Northern Ireland pig production.”

Mr Lynch added it was deeply concerning that some producers remain unclear about their position, stating it was “not good enough” for any family farm business to be left wondering about its future.

“Communication must be clear, timely and direct enough to give farmers the ability to plan,” he said.

“We recognise that processors are facing market pressures, including cheaper European products and changing customer demand. But those pressures cannot be used as a reason to leave farmers in the dark or to undermine the independent family farms that have supported the supply chain for years.”

During the meeting, Sofina outlined a range of market challenges facing the pork sector, including pressure from lower-cost European pork, changes in demand for British pigs, and wider supply-demand issues across the GB market. The UFU said it acknowledged these pressures, but pressed Sofina on the need for fairness and transparency in how decisions are being made.

“Our members need to know whether reductions are being applied fairly across the supply base, or whether some family farms are being disproportionately affected,” said Mr Lynch.

“If numbers are being reduced, producers need to understand why, how those decisions were made and what options are available to them. We also made it clear that Sofina’s public statements about supporting Northern Ireland and family farms must be matched by practical action. Warm words are not enough. Farmers need written clarity, meaningful engagement and a plan that shows independent NI pig producers have a future in the supply chain.”

The post UFU presses Sofina for urgent clarity on future of NI producers first appeared on Neighbourhood Retailer.