Top stories in the papers this week 12 – 18 February 2011

The annual change in Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco costs reflects higher prices for tobacco products

Labour makes pledge on rent reviews; Tesco criticised as application for off-licence rejected; Jameson success continues for Irish Distillers

News

18 February 2011

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1. Labour makes pledge on rent reviews

Labour has pledged to enact legislation to scrap upward-only commercial rent reviews as a priority, if handed power. The party added that as an interim measure it “will appoint a commercial rents ombudsman to adjudicate on rents that have the potential to cause a business to fail.” The Irish Examiner reports Retail Excellence Ireland, which represents over 8,500 stores, has called on people to vote for Labour or Fine Gael on February 25.

2. Tesco criticised as application for off-licence rejected

Tesco’s application to include an off-licence in its new Temple Bar store has been rejected by Dublin District Court. Judge Mary Collins said Tesco had shown a “total lack of bona fides in making such applications.” The Irish Times reports she added it was “disturbing” that Tesco had “an intention to make various applications in the hope to defeat prospective objectors”. The ruling could make it difficult to obtain new licences, yet Tesco has said it will appeal this judgement.

3. Jameson success continues for Irish Distillers

Irish Distillers Pernod Ricard has recorded rising sales of Jameson Whiskey in the six months to December 2010. RTE News reports that during this period sales volumes rose by 16%, while sales value grew at a rate of 18%. Pernod Ricard also said that Absolut vodka virtually doubled its sales in Ireland, due to a high level of marketing and sponsorship activity. Wine brands – Jacob’s Creek, Brancott Estate and Campo Viejo, also all posted strong growth.

4. Consumers urged to buy Irish pork and bacon

Bord Bia has launched the “Bring Home the Bacon” campaign which aims to encourage consumers to purchase more Irish pigmeat products over the next six months. The Irish Times reports that according to Bord Bia chief executive Aidan Cotter, the huge rise in pig feed costs and poor returns from the market mean this period will be crucial to the survival of the pigmeat sector, which is worth €1 billion a year to the Irish economy.

5. Circulation drops for all main daily and Sunday newspapers

Newspaper circulation figures for the second half of 2010 show falls for all of the main daily and Sunday newspapers compared with the same period in 2009. Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) figures quoted by RTE News, show that in the daily market, the Irish Independent still leads the way with an average circulation of 138,510 a day, down 7.6% on the same period a year earlier.

Also:

Greencore in fresh effort to mount Northern counter bid (Irish Examiner)

AA: Retailers not passing on falls in the cost of fuel (Belfast Telegraph)

Own-brand grocery sales jump 4.5% as customers bid to cut shopping bills (Irish Examiner)

Cork vegetarian food firm launches range of burgers on British market (Irish Examiner)

Irish food retailers and manufacturers face increased litigation under new EU laws (Mason Hayes+Curran Solicitors)

Abolishing upward-only rents to save 15,000 jobs, says Labour (Irish Times)

Retail sector wants action on rates and rents (Sunday Business Post)

Millfield shopping centre to open in Balbriggan in April (Irish Independent)

Belfast food store had mouse droppings and gnawed food (Belfast Telegraph)

Morrisons buys online Kiddicare (Belfast Telegraph)

Retailers set out priorities for Election 2011 (IBEC)

Survey findings reveal why 45% of food producers in Dublin area have failed in the past year (Irish Exporters)

Downsizing keeps things sweet for chocolatier (Irish Examiner)

Rising cost of oil looks to lift prices (Sunday Independent)

Traders fighting for their survival (Sunday Independent)

Retailer boosts sales with a little help from his Facebook friends (Irish Independent)

Henry Street values down over 70%

Coca-Cola says secret recipe intact (Irish Times)