News & Events
Tour Map to a Healthy Way
Health Stores Ireland launch new store finder and tour map and guide. Ireland has over 200 independent health foods stores that operate in almost every town centre and shopping mall in the country. Health Stores Ireland represents stores across the length and breadth of the country, from large national chains in big city locations to owner run stores in small towns and villages. They have decided to acknowledge their interconnectivity by producing a traditional touring map to highlight their network. Each store owner has made a recommendation...
Continue Reading...Pat Curran Award 🏆🏆
Joint Winners: Jill Bell, Well & Good in Midleton and Hannah Dare, Organico in Bantry. In Summer 2021, Eskimo-3 in collaboration with Rude Health Magazine, the official magazine of the Irish association of Health Stores, launched the annual “Pat Curran Award for Excellence in Customer Service.” We asked customers and readers to nominate an exceptional person working in an Independent Irish Health Store. The award is decided by national poll, voted by the readers of Rude Health Magazine, and this year there was a tie for first place....
Continue Reading...Here we are still, all in this together! ❤️
All hoping to stay well like never before. As we head into winter we are all looking to keep healthy in a broader sense than most of us have ever considered before. We do know how important it is to be physically healthy, with a well functioning immune system. But also now, more than ever, we are aware of how we need to care for our mental and emotional health as we face into more months of living with Covid19. Within each of our member stores, found in almost every town across the country, there is a friendly face ready to give the best...
Continue Reading...Offering essential services in a time of crisis 😷
Health food stores carry essential food items like rice, pasta, cereals, milk, eggs, bread, vegetables, hygiene and cleaning products. Importantly, they are a source for special dietary products for allergy sufferers and people on restricted diets for long term illness reasons. Health Stores Ireland member stores are making important and sometimes difficult changes to their working practices to protect customers, staff, owners and the wider community. Depending on the size and nature of their stores, businesses are offering call &...
Continue Reading...Customer care during virus 💁♀️
Message to members health stores during virus: “Health Stores Ireland is now calling on all member stores to take action to ensure that 2m person to person advisory can be practised. This may involve closing your shop door and limiting the number of customers in your shop at any one time, putting up signage and placing guidance floor tape near checkouts and offering phone-in and click & collect services. Consider providing free delivery of goods to customer’s cars and homes. Many stores have already started taking these types of...
Continue Reading...Taxing Food Supplements is Immoral
Health Stores Ireland, the organisation for which represents over 200 Irish Health Stores, has welcomed the timely interjection on the issue of VAT on food supplements by Professor John Nolan on Newstalks’ Pat Kenny Radio Show, which is aired today. Discussing the Minister for Finance’s intention to introduce 13.5% VAT on all Food Supplements, Professor Nolan explained the vital importance of the use of some Food Supplements in the reduction of sight loss for those suffering with Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) an eye condition...
Continue Reading...Anger at VAT Hike
Health Stores Ireland angry at Minister’s decision to impose 13.5% VAT on health food supplements. Health Stores Ireland has expressed anger at the news that Minister Paschal Donohoe is to implement VAT of 13.5% on health food supplements in the Finance Bill to be published tomorrow. Matt Ronan, Health Stores Ireland, “The move from the Minister flies in the face of this Government’s so called ‘Healthy Ireland’ initiative and will have a detrimental impact on the health of many people.” “There is a real danger that customers...
Continue Reading...Supplements out of reach for many people
Higher cost could put beneficial supplements out of reach for many people. A leading Irish academic has expressed serious concerns at plans to impose taxation on food supplements. Professor John Nolan, founder of the Nutrition Research Centre Ireland stated, “Our research has extensively studied the role of Nutrition in Vision and the prevention of blindness and identifies how targeted supplementation can help to retain visual function for the large number of Irish people afflicted with age-related macular degeneration”. AMD is the...
Continue Reading...Budget Submission -VAT on Food Supplements
BUDGET 2020 Options for the VAT treatment of food supplements. Executive summary This submission sets out why the decades old practice and policy of applying the zero VAT rate to food supplements should continue. It demonstrates that there has been no credible case put forward for applying the standard or a reduced VAT rate to food supplements from a legal, health or business impact perspective.It recommends that the Finance Act 2019 should confirm the zero rating of food supplements to provide political and policy clarity to retailers and...
Continue Reading...Health Stores welcome VAT deferral but …
Ireland’s 200+ independent health stores are delighted that the planned application of 23% VAT on all vitamins and food supplements has been deferred by the Irish Revenue Commissioners until November to allow for the Government to legislate an acceptable alternative. An intensive campaign which culminated with a protest and a presentation of 75,000 petition signatures outside the Dail and the offices of the Revenue on February 26th was greeted with the unexpected announcement of the deferral. Health Stores Ireland President, Gerald Colfer...
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