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Over €300,000 raised for youth mental health charity Jigsaw – Lidl Ireland 2019 Impact Report

Posted on: 03 Mar 2020

Lidl Ireland 2019 Impact Report highlights the retailer’s significant contribution to the Republic of Ireland 

  •  €314,301.26 raised for Jigsaw, Lidl’s charity partner which provides vital services to young people to combat mental health difficulties, with 582 events held in 2019
  • 159 local LGFA clubs were awarded jerseys and equipment through the Lidl LGFA Club partnership 
  •  411,390 meals equating to 230,699kgs of food donated to FoodCloud charities in the region 4,484 employed directly in Lidl’s 163 stores in the Republic of Ireland

Over €300,000 has been raised for youth mental health charity Jigsaw through initiatives and fundraisers lead by Lidl Ireland in 2019. 
The news comes as Lidl launches its 2019 Impact Report, detailing the positive economic and social impact that the company has made within the communities it serves throughout Ireland. 
4,484 people are employed directly in Lidl’s 163 stores in the Republic of Ireland.


Charitable partnerships 


Donations to Jigsaw, the National Centre for Youth Mental Health peaked in 2019, with €314,301.26 being raised for the charity through a range of local and national fundraisers including Superhero Saturday, Lidl’s Got Talent, Jump for Jigsaw and The Bakery and national initiatives such as One Good School™ and One Good Club™. 
Lidl entered into the fourth year of partnership with the Ladies Gaelic Football Association (LGFA) in 2019. 159 LGFA clubs benefitted from new jerseys and sports equipment through the partnership. Many more clubs look set to benefit from Lidl’s support in 2020 through the recently launched One Good Club™ programme, a youth mental health and wellbeing programme for LGFA clubs across the country. 


Reducing food waste and CO2 emissions 


Lidl’s community partnership with FoodCloud not only provides local charities with donated meals and in-kind donations but also works to reduce food waste. In 2019 the national partnership diverted 230,699 kgs of food from being sent to landfill, saving 738,237 units of CO2.


Lidl celebrate 20 years in Ireland
This year marks Lidl’s 20th anniversary of its establishment in Ireland. In that time, the retailer has opened 163 stores across the country and forged strong partnerships with a network of 250 Irish suppliers, sourcing €1 billion worth of produce across the island of Ireland. Over €554 million was invested in local suppliers and external partners in the Republic of Ireland by Lidl in 2019 alone.  


Other major milestones of the past 20 years include:

  •  A €100 million investment and creation of 250 new jobs at Lidl’s new Regional Distribution Centre in Newbridge, Co. Kildare in 2019
  • €4 million investment in sponsorship of the Ladies Gaelic Football Association in 2016

Commenting on the launch of the 2019 Impact Report, Managing Director of Lidl Ireland and Northern Ireland, J.P. Scally said: 

“I’m delighted and incredibly proud of the significant and positive contribution Lidl has made to our customers, the communities that we serve and our environment in 2019. It echoes our overall commitment to make lives better, something which we as a retailer have been striving to do since we arrived in Ireland in 2000, while still offering customers the best prices in the market.”


Daniel Kelly, Corporate Social Responsibility Manager at Lidl Ireland, commented: 


“As one of the country’s largest food retailers, we at Lidl Ireland are continually working on new ways to help our consumers make sustainable choices. The 2019 Impact Report is an excellent reflection of the positive impact our CSR programme, A Better Tomorrow, is having on communities throughout Ireland. We will continue to work to measure our impact and operate at the highest standards to meet our sustainability targets for the future.


Mike Mansfield, Jigsaw – the National Centre for Youth Mental Health, commented: 


“The impact of the Lidl partnership on Jigsaw nationally and locally has been significant. The Lidl staff have really got behind what we are trying to do, from fundraising, to talking with customers, to promoting and advocating our work and much more, they have, again and again, gone above and beyond. What is 100% clear is that community and giving back are central to the Lidl team and at Jigsaw we are hugely grateful.”