LIDL, the German multinational retail store which plans to open nine outlets in the Republic in the coming weeks, has told farm representatives that only 8 per cent of the products on its shelves will be Irish produced, according to the Irish Farmers' Association.
Following a meeting in Dublin yesterday with Lidl's managing director here, Mr Patrick Kaudewitz, the president of the IFA, Mr Tom Parlon, expressed grave dissatisfaction with the food-sourcing policy of the company.
"Lidl's policy as outlined to the IFA today is an affront to the Irish public and shows no responsibility to the community from which they draw their profit," Mr Parlon said. He stopped short of calling for a boycott of the company but asked the public "to seriously consider why they should support a multinational company which returned so little to the Irish economy and Irish jobs in the Irish food sector.
"Lidl told us that even their Irish products will not be identifiable by the consumers because there will be no known Irish brands nor will the Irish products packed for Lidl be labelled as Irish," he said.
"This will clearly deny Irish consumers the opportunity to make choices supporting locally produced food and the jobs of 170,000 Irish farmers and workers employed in the Irish agrifood sector." Mr Parlon, who was among a group of farmers who removed New Zealand lamb from the Iceland chain store in Dun Laoghaire last year, said the company had given no explanation for its lack of support for Irish food products and food brands. Major retailers typically retailed 50 per cent and more Irish food products.
"The IFA will maintain pressure on Lidl to source the bulk of their food from local suppliers and will not be satisfied until they do so," he said after the meeting.