"Volunteering within your own community, for the benefit of your community, helps to strengthen ties and develop a sense of place, a place where people belong.  As we look to the 60th Anniversary of the competition in 2018, I am happy that its future is bright."

Martin Kelleher, Managing Director of SuperValu added: "As a family owned Irish business, we are exceptionally proud of our 25 year association with the TidyTowns competition and are delighted to have been given the opportunity to build upon our successful partnership which has helped to establish it as Ireland's leading community initiative.

Given that SuperValu stores are owned by local entrepreneurs, we pride ourselves on being at the heart of towns and villages all over Ireland.  The TidyTowns competition has always been a natural fit for us as our continued success depends on vibrant communities across the country.  We see the positive impact that TidyTowns volunteers have first-hand every day and are honoured to be in a position whereby we can celebrate their achievements each year.

As a company, we want to make the towns and villages we live in, better and healthier places for everyone.  Our association with TidyTowns plays a key role in realising this ambition.  We look forward to working with the Department and helping to build upon the success of the TidyTowns competition to date by increasing its popularity into the future."

The SuperValu TidyTowns competition has been running since 1958 and is organised by the Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs.  It was devised by Fáilte Ireland as a tourism initiative but has developed to focus on how people live in their communities, for today and into the future. The competition has been sponsored by SuperValu since 1992. Interest in the SuperValu TidyTowns competition has been stronger than ever in recent years, with 859 communities entering the competition in 2016.

Following a targeted invitation to over 38 companies and a number of sponsorship agencies in Ireland, SuperValu has been chosen as the successful candidate to sponsor the Tidy Towns Competition from 2017 to 2021.

Together with its retail partners, SuperValu has 222 stores nationwide and employs approximately 14,500 colleagues.  As SuperValu retailers both live and work in the communities in which they operate, they are heavily involved in local causes and contribute over €2.5 million annually to local initiatives.