Supervalu reveal Noel McMeel as ambassador chef
SuperValu Sales Director Nigel Maxwell with star chef Noel McMeel
Foodmarket convenience brand SuperValu has announced a partnership top Northern Irish chef Noel McMeel.
The announcement was made during a decadent seven-course meal and drinks reception at Tedfords Kitchen in Belfast, celebrating Northern Ireland’s Year of Food and Drink.
The partnership with McMeel, executive head chef at the five-star Lough Erne Golf Resort and Hotel, comes as the retail brand rolls out a major upgrade of its 35 stores across Northern Ireland.
SuperValu stores, which are owned by independent retailers, currently sell in excess of £105 million of local products annually. Some 60 per cent of everything sold in store is produced or sourced in Northern Ireland while more than 75 per cent of all fresh ranges are sourced locally.
All of SuperValu’s beef, pork, lamb, milk, cream and eggs have NI origins, which equates to £50m of locally produced fresh foods annually.
Michael McCormack, managing director of Musgrave NI, which operates the SuperValu brand, announced the partnership.
“SuperValu has always been at the heart of the local community, supporting real food and real people,” he said. “We are currently implementing a major upgrade programme which will be rolled out across all of our 35 stores to offer customers the best in fresh, quality local convenience food.
“As part of this investment, we are delighted to partner Noel as he is a passionate ambassador for local produce and wholeheartedly embodies our ethos at SuperValu of using simple, local ingredients to produce the best of fresh, quality food,” he added.
Chef McMeel added: “I’m very excited to team up with SuperValu and its independent retailers as they represent the heart of the community in Northern Ireland, with their support of local produce, jobs and suppliers.
“SuperValu, like me, is all about keeping it real – real food for real people, so I am delighted to be able to bring my recipes, top tips and cooking twists to homes throughout Northern Ireland,” he added.
