Athenry bakery secures major UK supermarket deal

By SIOBHÃÂN HOLLIMAN LOCAL bakery company, The Foods of Athenry, has secured a major deal with Tesco UK and it's hoped their product sales there could reach more than €500,000 next year. The bakery, formed and run by husband and wife team Paul and Siobhán Lawless, has also been taken on by Dunnes Stores in Ireland as well as Spar, Eurospace, Mace, SuperValu and Centra stores around the country. Their gluten-free chocolate chip cookies and gluten-free flapjacks will be available in almost 300 UK Tesco stores and 200 Irish stores from this week.[private] It is very good news for a company which almost faced ruin a year ago when a fire at the bakery raged for 24 hours and gutted the entire production area. The fire caused €1 million worth of damage and had a serious impact on the bakery's business. It took many months for the repair works to be completed and the Lawlesses resumed full production in January. The fire led to a fall in revenue of about €500,000 for the family company and set back the launch of their extended gluten-free range. However, the couple were determined to press ahead and this week are celebrating the launch of the gluten-free range in Tesco stores around the UK. In Ireland, it's hoped that much of The Foods of Athenry product range will be available nationwide by the end of the summer. Speaking to The Tuam Herald Siobhán Lawless says it has been very hard work, but everyone is delighted. 'It's a huge leap for the company,' she said, but stressed that the ethos on which they founded the company hasn't changed since they first began 12 years ago. 'We started by supplying local restaurants and retailers with freshly baked produce. Since then, our ethos has not changed; we create unique recipes using only the finest, natural ingredients that are free from all artificial flavours, colours, sweeteners and preservatives,' explained Siobhán. Just before last year's fire, The Foods of Athenry were about to launch a new and more extensive gluten-free range as they felt much of what was on the shop shelves was imported or wasn't that appetitising. Paul Lawless says recovering from such a devastating fire has been extremely tough but that the company has received a lot of support over the past year from family, shops and Bord Bia. 'To have our products on the shelves of the major multiples after such a devastating event is a momentous occasion for us. We worked increasingly hard to rebuild the business. We look forward to increasing our product portfolio both nationally and internationally,' he commented. There has been a hugely positive reaction to the extended range of gluten-free products and The Foods of Athenry are keen for the coeliac-friendly breads, cakes and cereals to taste just as good as the standard range. 'You shouldn't notice the difference when tasting something from either range,' said Siobhán, adding that gluten-free products are becoming more mainstream and that is good news for consumers as there is increased pressure on manufacturers to ensure they taste good. The Athenry bakers invested in a dedicated, gluten-free production facility in 2010 and, fortunately, this escaped most of the fire damage. However, days before the blaze they had moved the machinery to clear the way for a specialist flooring and unfortunately all but one machine was lost. Siobhán said that they had initiated discussions with the large supermarket chains before the fire and luckily the opportunity was still there when they resumed full production. Foods of Athenry has hired three more full-time staff in recent weeks and have taken on eight part-time workers for the summer. The company employs about 15 staff, full and part-time, but Siobhán expects to increase this number by 50 per cent by the end of the year. 'It's hard to gauge at the moment. Tesco has already intimated that they are interested in our gluten-free Christmas range, which would mean an extremely busy period for us between October and December.' Siobhán is conscious that one in ten people suffers from coeliac disease and is eager for the company to continue to engage in new product development and broaden its range of products. She says more people are choosing to eat gluten-free products, even if they are not a coeliac. The Foods of Athenry has 20 products in both its regular and gluten-free product range. The mother of five admits it's been an extremely tough year. 'It's been pretty much non-stop. We're exhibiting in Volvo this week, which is great exposure for us. 'I'm hoping to be able to take a day off sometime,' she laughs.[/private]