Service Charter

1. Mission Statement

“To drive through market insight and, in partnership with industry, the commercial success of a world-class Irish food, drink and horticulture industry.”

2. Customer Charter

We are committed to providing our customers with a professional, efficient and courteous service. The purpose of this Customer Charter is to set out the nature and quality of services which our customers can expect to receive from Bord Bia. We will treat all customers with respect, dignity, professionalism and efficiency, and, our customers are requested to treat Bord Bia staff and each other in a similar manner. The term "customers” refers to Irish food, drink & horticulture client companies, farmers and stakeholders. These standards equally apply to other stakeholders that we engage with, including the general public, Government Departments, key partners and media.

(Note: the publication of a Customer Charter is not intended to create any new legal rights for customers.)

3. Telephone Enquiries

Bord Bia's head office in Dublin will be available to answer your calls during the hours of 8.30am-5.30pm - Monday-Friday. Our aim is to answer all calls quickly. We will identify ourselves and our area of work, be polite and helpful, and do our best to provide our customers with clear and correct information. If we cannot give an answer straight away, we will take the customer’s details and call the customer back at a suitable time. We will only connect callers to voicemail when the person they wish to speak to is unavailable and we will do our best to respond to voicemail messages within one working day. Our main telephone number is 00353 (0)1 668 5155.

4. Written and Electronic Communications

We shall endeavour to respond to enquiries from customers with sensitivity and the minimum of delay, fostering a climate of mutual respect between Bord Bia and customer.

We will acknowledge all communications from customers sent to info@bordbia.ie within 24 hours of receipt Monday-Friday and aim to respond to all such queries within 5 working days of receipt. In the event where a response within 5 working days is not possible we will send an interim reply explaining the nature of the situation and a progress report. 

We will acknowledge all communications by post from customers within 7 working days of receipt and provide routine information on request.

We will give contact names in all communications to ensure ease of access to relevant staff members.

5. Appointments

We will be available to meet punctually with customers, by appointment, during normal office hours and, where it is unavoidable, we will try to be flexible outside such hours. We will greet visitors politely, be fair and helpful and deal with their enquiries as quickly as possible. We aim to provide appropriate facilities for meetings and ensure that our offices are clean and safe.

6. Physical Access

We will continue to maintain an office and meetings environment that is efficient and well maintained and that complies with occupational and safety standards and, furthermore, that facilitates access for people with disabilities. For further information on accessibility please contact our access officer - accessofficer@bordbia.ie

7. Our Websites

We will ensure that our websites are kept up to date, and contain information relevant to our customer base. We will monitor and take account of customer inputs to the online feedback facility which enables customers to record their views about the quality of the website.

8. The Provision of Information

We will take a proactive approach in providing information that is clear, timely and accurate, is available at all points of contact and meets the requirements of people with specific needs. We will provide our programmes and services in a manner that respects customers’ rights to privacy and confidentiality. We will ensure that all our generally available information is accessible in both electronic and printed formats. We will continue to support the provision by Bord Bia of general information relating to its activities in a way that is open and enhances its accountability to the general public.

9. Equal Status Policy

We are fully committed to providing a service that is accessible, accommodates diversity and is relevant to all our customers and accommodates the needs and aspirations specific to particular groups and seeks equality of outcome.

10. Official Languages Act 2003

This Act has the primary objective of ensuring better availability and a higher standard of public services through Irish or bilingually (Irish and English). We will liaise with the Department of Arts, Heritage and Gaeltacht so as to ensure compliance in relation to implementing the requirements of this legislation.

11. Complaints

We want to know when we get it wrong or could do better so welcome any customer feedback, whether it’s complaints, compliments or comments. By letting us know how we’re doing; you can help us improve our services. We will deal with complaints in a professional and fair manner. Every effort will be made to resolve the complaint early and to the satisfaction of both the customer and Bord Bia. Complaints which cannot be resolved immediately by the Manager of the unit where the complaint arises, will be notified to the Secretary's office; acknowledged within 5 working days and will be dealt with and replied to within 20 working days, or if this is not possible, will be the subject of a stated reason for the additional time requirement and a progress report. The complaint will be treated in confidence unless the complainant wishes otherwise (and subject to our obligations under the Freedom of Information Acts, 1997 and 2003).

12. Appeals

In cases where a customer is not satisfied with the outcome or handling of a complaint, notification will be sent to the Chief Executive's office who will implement a review process, and advise the customer of the likely timeframe to complete.

If you are not happy with this second reply, you can refer your complaint (and our replies) to the Ombudsman for consideration.

Office of Ombudsman

6 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin 2, D02 W773;

Phone: +353 1 639 5600

Email: ombudsman@ombudsman.gov.ie

Bord Bia operates a separate complaints and appeals procedure for members of our quality assurance schemes and these procedures are outlined in the various quality assurance standards. See here for the Quality Assurance Scheme Standards please.

13. Freedom of Information

Bord Bia is a prescribed organisation under the Freedom of Information Act 2014. The Freedom of Information Act 2014 (the FOI Act) is designed to allow public access to information held by public bodies which is not routinely available through other sources. Access to information under the Acts is subject to certain exemptions and involves specific procedures and time limits. FOI requests to Bord Bia must be made in writing and addressed to The Freedom of Information Officer, Bord Bia, 140 Pembroke Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4. The request must state clearly that the request is made under the FOI Act, specify the preferred form of access, such as inspection of the originals or copies. If information is desired in a particular form, this should be mentioned in the application.

In addition to the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act, the Data Protection Acts 1988 and 2003 also apply to Bord Bia. The Data Protection Acts protect the privacy of individuals whose personal data is being processed. Personal data is information relating to a living individual who can be identified from the data itself or in conjunction with other information held.

14. Feedback

We regard feedback as the key to understanding the needs and expectations of our customers. We encourage staff to use their day-to-day contact with customers as a means of gathering feedback on the quality of service provided. We evaluate individual activities as well as undertaking an independently conducted survey of Irish food, drink and horticulture clients annually to ensure we are apprised of the perceptions of the client base on the quality of our services.

15. Location

Local offices follow their respective normal commercial practices, including public holidays. Details of our offices can be found by following this link.