Twelve of Ireland’s leading beef producers have been announced on the shortlist for the Origin Green Beef Sustainability Awards 2014. The awards, which aim to highlight the link between environmental sustainability and efficient beef production at farm level, are organised by Bord Bia, in conjunction with the Irish Farmers Journal and Teagasc.
Winners will be announced by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney, TD, on Wednesday, 24th September, at an awards ceremony hosted by Bord Bia at the National Ploughing Championships in Co. Laois.
The twelve farmers have been selected from the membership of Bord Bia’s Quality Assurance Scheme, which includes over 43,000 beef farms. The winners will be decided following a farm visit by the judging panel which includes Joe Burke, Bord Bia, Darren Carty, Irish Farmers Journal and Aidan Murray, Teagasc.
Joe Burke, Livestock Sector Manager, Bord Bia said, “Each of the shortlisted farmers demonstrated strong sustainability credentials with regard to carbon footprint, biodiversity and water management. They are among the top performers in the Bord Bia Quality Assurance scheme demonstrating the efficient production of prime cattle suitable for our premium markets. It is encouraging that these leading farms are all producing beef with a low Carbon Footprint, which is a strong selling point that Bord Bia uses to promote Irish beef on the global market”.
The Shortlist
The following producers have been shortlisted and one winner will be announced in each category:
Suckler to Beef:
- John Daly, Riverstick, Co. Cork
- Michael O’Donohue, Ballyglunin, Co. Galway
- Jonathan Greene, Athy, Co. Kildare
Suckler to Weanling / Store:
- Paul Hurley, Innishannon, Co. Cork
- Tim Joyce, Turloughmore, Co. Galway
- John Keena, Belmont, Co. Offaly
Weanling / Store to Beef:
- Pat Murray, Gorey, Co. Wexford
- Aidan Kelly, Taughmaconnell, Co. Roscommon
- James Hoey, Dunleer, Co. Louth
Dairy Calf to Beef:
- John Kinsella, New Ross, Co. Wexford
- William J Morrow, Raphoe, Co. Donegal
- Joseph Farrell, Castledermot, Co. Kildare
The twelve shortlisted producers will be hosted on a 3-day beef study tour to France in Summer 2015. Each of the category winners will also receive a set of farm weighing scales for their cattle handling facilities. This is a useful tool to monitor livestock performance and help make management decisions concerning feeding strategy and selection for sale.
About Origin Green
Origin Green is a unique nationwide sustainability programme developed by Bord Bia in order to differentiate Irish food on the global market. In the beef sector, a key aspect of Origin Green is the sustainability survey that producers undertake at the time of their Quality Assurance audit. As well as providing a unique selling point for Irish beef, the feedback information from these surveys can help to further improve the farms’ efficiency. For further information, visit www.origingreen.ie.