Evron Wins SPAR UK Own-Brand Contract

Northern Ireland-based fresh and frozen baked goods manufacturer, Evron Foods has recently secured a contract to supply SPAR UK with own-label fresh and frozen garlic breads. The deal, which initially kicked off in July, saw Evron take over the supply of SPAR brand twin-pack frozen garlic baguettes and, from September, the company will also be supplying SPAR with own-brand fresh single garlic baguettes as well as garlic slices, which is a new line for the retailer.

Commenting, Dominic Downey, Sales & Marketing Director at Evron Foods, said: "This is a significant new contract for us, especially the chilled lines. Fresh foods are a growth area that SPAR is trying to develop in the UK and we are delighted to be a part of that."

Evron Foods already supplies Waitrose, Asda, Sainsbury's, Lidl, Netto in the UK and all of the Musgrave Group in the UK and Ireland with their own-brand garlic breads. "We blend all our own fillings on-site, using fresh butter or margarine, fresh garlic and either fresh or IQF parsley," said Dominic. "We produce bespoke recipes for each customer according to their own specifications."

Based in Portadown, County Armagh, Evron Foods also produces a range of bread and patisserie products for in-store bakeries and food service. These include French breads, ciabattas, which are made exclusively at the company's second factory in Pontypool, South Wales, fruit pies and crumbles. All are available part-baked ready to finish in-store, though the French breads are also available as Thaw 'n Serve, as are a range of American style muffins.

The company also has dedicated lines at its Northern Irish and Welsh factories producing breads for the Subway chain. "This is a major contract for Evron and we are delighted that we have been supplying the Subway franchise since it first entered the European market," said Dominic.

Under its own EasiBake retail brand, Evron also supplies garlic breads to the continent, especially the Costas in Spain, where they are very popular with the large ex-pat population, as well as to Euro Disney in Paris. In December 2009, Evron secured a new distributor in Sweden for its EasiBake brand. "Our business there is growing very well through that distributor to the extent that Sweden is now our biggest export market outside of the UK and Ireland," said Dominic Downey.

"In fact, our brand has proved such a hit that we have developed new multilingual packaging, with product and cooking details in English, French, German, Swedish and Norwegian, as we feel there is huge potential to grow our business in Northern Europe. At the request of the Swedish market, we have also developed a garlic butter baguette with no herbs, which is indicative of Evron's ability and willingness to work with customers to develop bespoke products to their exact requirements.

"Over the last number of years we have invested very substantially in our capabilities both in Northern Ireland and in Wales and we are actively seeking to grow our retail and foodservice business within the UK and further afield," concluded Dominic.