Aldi announce major supply deals with Clandeboye Estate Yoghurt and Lakeland Dairies

ALDI has announced new multi-million euro supply deals with Bangor-based Clandeboye Estate Yoghurt and cross-border co-operative Lakeland Dairies.

The supermarket chain, which has no presence in Northern Ireland, announced four new contracts worth €26 million (£22.5m) at the Irish Ploughing Championships 2023 in Co Laois.

Aldi said the new two-year contract extension with Clandeboye Estate Yoghurts, worth €9.9m (£8.6m), will see the Co Down food firm, continue to supply Aldi’s Irish operation with granola and Greek style craft yoghurts. But significantly, it will see Clandeboye also supply Aldi’s operation in Britain for the first time.

The deal is expected to drive the Bangor company’s sales volumes by 450 per cent and see it expand its 20-strong workforce. Clandeboye has supplied Aldi for at least a decade.

The biggest deal announced on Thursday, worth €15.3m (£13.3m) with Lakeland, will see the island’s biggest dairy co-op continue to supply milk and dairy products, including Clonbawn fresh and light milk, to Aldi stores across the Republic.

Aldi has also signed a new contract with Cork-based Velo Coffee Roasters, which has a base in Northern Ireland, and north Co Dublin’s Donnelly Fresh Produce.

Announcing the new contracts, Colin Breslin, managing director of buying and services at Aldi Ireland, said: “At Aldi, we are committed to supporting our Irish producers, meaning our customers can enjoy the very best products Ireland has to offer, and our suppliers can reach new markets with their produce.

“We have long-standing relationships with many of our suppliers, and these new deals we are announcing today with four of our valued suppliers, is testament to the partnerships we look to build.

“The scale of this investment, worth more than €26 million, shows how much we value our supplier partners – how we want to help them sustain and grow their businesses, how we’ve stood shoulder to shoulder with them throughout what have been a few challenging years, and how we want to help them create new jobs across the country, and unlock new markets for their produce.”