11 August 2018
By Mary Bermingham
mary@TheCork.ie
It was an evening of well-deserved celebration and excitement for 60 Cork Centra stores as they were honoured at the 2018 Centra Quality Awards for excellence in the fields of hygiene and food safety within their businesses.
Throughout the course of the event, which was held in the stunning Malton Hotel, Killarney, the Excellence Ireland Quality Association awarded a carefully-selected group of 29 Cork Centra stores with the Excellence Ireland Supreme National Hygiene Award – Q Mark; a prestigious nod to their continuous commitment to upholding exemplary standards of store hygiene and cleanliness. Each successful Centra store was chosen as a result of their ongoing hard work and dedication in these areas over the past three years, having displayed a clear awareness of the importance of providing the best service for their customers, as well as ensuring that quality, hygiene and food safety are continually prioritised by their team of staff.
The 29 Cork winners of the Excellence Ireland Supreme National Hygiene Award were:
Delaney’s Centra, Aherla
Kearney’s Centra, Ballydesmond
Cronin’s Centra, Ballylickey
O’Leary’s Centra, Bandon
Cotter’s Centra, Carrigaline
Ahern’s Centra, Carrigtwohill
Cahill’s Centra, Cloyne
Murphy’s Centra, Cobh
Down’s Centra, Crossbarry
Whelton’s Centra, Denroches Cross
O’Leary’s Centra, Douglas Road
O’Donovan’s Centra, Enniskeane
Herlihy’s Centra, Grand Parade
Herlihy’s Centra, Bishopstown
Herlihy’s Centra, Fermoy
Herlihy’s Centra Millstreet
O’Sullivan’s Centra, Kilworth
Lee’s Centra, Limerick Road
O’Mahony’s Centra, Mallow
Coleman’s Centra, Millstreet
Farrell’s Centra, Mitchelstown
Herlihy’s Centra, Oliver Plunkett Street
Flynn’s Centra, Riverstick
Murphy’s Centra, Rochestown Road
O’Leary’s Centra, South Douglas Road
O’Leary’s Centra, Tower Blarney
Fuller’s Centra, Union Hall
Hennessy/Hickey’s Centra, Victoria Cross
Ross’ Centra, Watergrasshill
Aside from this reputable accolade, a further 31 Cork Centra stores were also recognised during the event for their commitment to health and safety within the Irish food sector. These businesses were presented with the Excellence Ireland National Hygiene and Food Safety Certificate, which is another independent verification that the highest standards of operational hygiene and food safety are being met across the board by each of the selected convenience stores.
The 31 stores that proudly accepted an Excellence Ireland National Hygiene and Food Safety Certificate were:
Hennessy’s Centra, Ballineen
Hegarty’s Centra, Ballinspittle
Dromey’s Centra, Ballymakeera
O’Leary’s Centra, Bandon
Andrew’s Centra, Bantry
Blake’s Centra, Blarney
Doherty’s Centra, Buttevant
O’Sullivan’s Centra, Castleyons
Ahern’s Centra, Castlemartyr
Lee’s Centra, Charleville
Scally’s Centra, Clonakilty
Murphy’s Centra, Coachford
Lynch’s Centra, Crosshaven
O’Mahony’s Centra, Doneraile
Breen’s Centra, Donnybrook
Collins’ Centra, Drimoleague
Galvin’s Centra, Dunmanway
Herlihy’s Centra, Mallow
O’Sullivan’s Centra, Innishannon
Ahern’s Centra, Killeagh
Smith’s Centra, Kinsale
Centra, Kinsale Road
Flynn’s Centra, Little Island
O’Reilly’s Centra, Rosscarbery
Grandon’s Centra, Sallybrook
Brosnan’s Centra, Schull
Clifford’s Centra, Shandon Street
Foley’s Centra, Timoleague
Whyte’s Centra, Togher Cross
O’Riordan’s Centra, Tory Top Road
Mahony’s Centra, Washington Street
In total, 431 Centra stores across Ireland were awarded during the ceremony , with 295 receiving the Excellence Ireland National Hygiene and Food Safety Certificate and 136 walking away with the coveted top prize of Excellence Ireland Supreme National Hygiene Award.
Commenting on the importance of these prestigious awards, Martin Kelleher, Managing Director of Centra Ireland, said: “Each and every one of the stores that have been awarded should be incredibly proud of their achievement, which is a direct result of their consistent input into ensuring their food service meets – and even exceeds – the incredibly high standards put in place by Excellence Ireland. These awards act not only as a validation to store owners, management and staff that their hard work has been recognised, but it also assures customers that exceptional food safety standards are being adhered to within each of the winning stores. Peace of mind is hugely important to consumers, especially within the food industry, and this seal of approval allows customers of these Centra stores to shop with ease and confidence.”
Irene Collins of the Excellence Ireland Quality Association was also quick to applaud the worthy winners, saying: “Throughout this process, we have witnessed great dedication to diligence in food safety measures and excellence in quality control by a selection of Centra stores in particular. Many of these teams have gone above and beyond the call of duty to ensure that their store stands out from the crowd, making it an easy decision for Excellence Ireland to award them accordingly. We thank all of the winning stores for maintaining meticulous quality and hygiene standards and we would like to congratulate each of them on this fantastic achievement.”
With over 450 stores, Centra employs almost 11,000 people and serves over three million customers per week. Centra invests more than €240 million in local communities per annum, which is the equivalent of €4.5 million per week through a combination of payments to local suppliers, acquisition of local business services, wages, charitable donations and local sponsorships.
