Guaranteed Irish

Guaranteed Irish is the name and slogan of an Irish nonprofit organisation which encourages import substitution by Irish consumers. Participating companies can use the Guaranteed Irish "GI" logo, a stylised overlay of the letters "g" and "i", on packaging and marketing materials for products and services certified by the organisation as originating in Ireland, defined as having at least 50% of value added in Ireland. Most of the companies using the logo are in the Republic of Ireland, but Northern Ireland firms are also eligible. The campaign was developed from December 1974 by the Irish Goods Council, originally the Working Group on the Promotion and Sale of Irish Goods within the National Development Association, which was incorporated separately in 1978. The Council's first director, Vivian Murray, was instrumental in the campaign. Awareness of the logo was fostered by advertisements on RTÉ Television. Spending on the campaign increased from £90,376 in 1976 to £361,491 in 1981. In 1980, 1,000 companies were participating. Capital Spicer exercise books used in schools exposed children to the logo. In 1982, the European Court of Justice ruled that, since the Irish Goods Council received state funding, its Guaranteed Irish campaign contravened the Treaty of Rome's rules against protectionism. As a consequence the campaign was separated from the Irish Goods Council into a new organisation, Guaranteed Irish Limited, which does not receive state funding. It was launched in 1984 by Patrick Hillery, then President of Ireland.

The GI logo is not a certification mark. In the 1990s, most companies using the logo were Irish operations of multinational corporations. A 2005 survey showed 90% brand recognition for the logo, which was redesigned that year. In 2008, Guaranteed Irish Limited had three employees, who inspect business premises to validate that the value added meets the requirements for certification. In March 2017, Guaranteed Irish announced plans to increase the number of member firms from 300 to 1000 by the end of 2018.

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