An Irish food processor has bagged a €850m contract to supply Subway across Europe
The deal will see Dawn Farms supply over 4,000 of the fast-food brand’s outlets.
DAWN FARMS HAS sealed a contract worth up to €850 million over the next seven years to supply Subway stores across Europe.
The deal, from one of Ireland’s biggest meat processing firms, comes after an earlier, €700 million contract signed between the companies in 2010 ended.
Under the new agreement, Dawn Farms will provide cooked sandwich meats to around 4,000 of the fast-food chain’s European outlets.
The meat processor, which was established in 1985, has its main base in Naas, County Kildare, but also has manufacturing operations in the UK.
The company specialises in supplying cooked and fermented meats for pizzas, sandwiches and ready-made meals.
Dawn Farms chief executive Larry Murrin said there is an opportunity for his company – and the Irish food producers – to grow significantly as Subway expands its presence on the continent.
“This contract demonstrates that Ireland and the Irish agri-food sector is held in high regard internationally and has the potential to expand its global reach, if we can achieve the right mix of competitiveness and market led innovation,” he said.
“Subway has ambitious growth plans for new restaurant openings in Ireland, the UK and across Europe and with this strategic supply agreement these can translate into significant additional export sales for Ireland.”
Mike Attwood of EIPC and Larry Murrin (right)
Irish produce
Headquartered in Connecticut, the Subway brand was founded in 1965 and now has 44,000 locations in more than 111 countries worldwide.
The organisation’s network of franchises are managed by a European-based company owned by Subway called EIPC.
Mike Attwood, purchasing and supply chain director of EIPC, said Subway was delighted to continue its relationship with Dawn Farms that started in 1993 when the company first moved into the European market.
For many years, Subway has also sourced its dairy, bread and confectionery products from Irish companies such as Willowbrook Foods and Evron.
