Double success for Cork firms at National Q Mark Awards

There was delight for the city and county at a gala ceremony in Dublin’s Clayton Hotel on Burlington Road, where the winners of The National Q Mark Awards 2019 were announced.

The highest accolade a business in Ireland can achieve, the National Q Mark Awards are given only to companies who reach peak standards of quality and excellence.

At the black-tie event on Friday night, hosted by Cork’s own Jonathan Healy, Quish’s SuperValu in Ballincollig picked up the first prize for Cork. The outlet was the winner in the category of the Q Mark for Hygiene & Food Safety, Recognised for Excellence – Retail Supermarkets. Quish’s SuperValu are grocery retailers specialising in Fresh Foods. The store is family run employing 115 team members ranging across Chefs, Bakers, Confectioners, Butchers and Sales Advisors.

Their award was sponsored this year by Kelsius, and Irene Collins, Managing Director of EIQA, the proud guardians of the Q Mark suite of Quality standards, congratulated the Quish team: “This team are not challenged by change but excited by it! Their perseverance and commitment to continuous improvement has paid off… they are very worthy winners of this Q Mark Award. This win will be a huge boost for all involved, congratulations”!

The store’s Deli Manager Fergal O’Brien said he was thrilled with the prize: “Having the top standards in Food Safety and Hygiene is the key to our success. This win verifies our commitment to the daily efforts that provide our customers with Safe Food and a Clean store to shop in”.

The second success for Cork came in the Q Mark category for Hygiene & Food Safety, Recognised for Excellence – Healthcare. Bon Secours Health System was announced as the winner, to the delight of the team at the ceremony. The hospital is the largest private facility of its kind in Ireland and its staff are its greatest asset. They work relentlessly to provide the best care possible to those in need.

Irene Collins was thrilled for the team: “Bon Secours Hospital in Cork is the largest private hospital in Ireland with over 1200 staff and almost 100,000 attendances a year. The catering team are focused on exceptionally high standards of hygiene and food safety. Their food safety management system is practical, user friendly and fully embraced across the whole team. A brilliant result”!

Catering Co-ordinator Sonya O’Connor said it’s an amazing achievement: “The Q Mark is such a highly respected standard. Winning the Q Mark means that we have achieved this standard and that we are the best at what we do”.

Quish’s SuperValu in Ballincollig and the Bon Secours team in the city can now proudly display their awards on their premises, to let customers, patients and staff know that they’ve earned their place at the premium level of Irish enterprise. Almost 120 companies battled it out for the titles this year, in the drive to win one of what have become known as Ireland’s Oscars of business excellence.

Meanwhile, Jennifer Hayes from CIT took home another honour for Cork. She picked up the Diploma in Quality Management Student of the Year for year 2.

The winners of this year’s awards were selected from a list of more than 110 nominees, which was carefully scrutinised by a team of 14 judges from the worlds of enterprise, food safety, academia and more.