The National Dairy Council & The Irish Dairy Board, through its Kerrygold brand, have entered into a co-sponsorship agreement to run the national competition which sets out to identify and reward our top dairy farmers.

The NDC & Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards will continue the ethos of the already well-established competition described as ‘The Sam Maguire of Farming’.

“Consumers here are in the fortunate position of being able to enjoy the benefits of top quality dairy farming produced off our grassland pastures.  The high standards applied on Irish farms are the cornerstone on which we have developed the international Kerrygold brand and we are delighted to be co-sponsor,” said Vincent Buckley, Chairman of The Irish Dairy Board.   “The technical standards for dairy farming have become very rigorous in order to meet consumer and customer requirements both at home and abroad and as we export over 80% of our dairy produce is it vital that the high standards we have in our industry are recognised and built upon for the future.”

Jackie Cahill, Chairman of The National Dairy Council said that the NDC & Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards keeps quality on the agenda for the dairy sector but also identifies individual farmers who are role models, whose insights and practices are valuable learnings for others in dairying.

“The Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine (Food Harvest 2020) is forecasting a growth of 50% in dairy output between 2015-2020, so it is important to continue to recognise the good work of Irish dairy farmers and the standards they set,” said Mr. Cahill.   “The new co-sponsorship agreement continues to support this national award programme for a further three years, but also to expand its work in order to build awareness amongst consumers about the excellence of dairy farming on their own doorstep and subsequently the high standards of dairy produce that can be enjoyed.”

More details on: http://www.irishpressreleases.ie/2012/02/21/national-dairy-council-kerrygold-to-co-sponsor-quality-milk-awards/

Learn how to establish a successful community group and troubleshoot some of the problems frequently faced by community groups. Training will also include; Health & Safety considerations, using local media to increase the profile of your group in the wider community and organising successful events in the community.

Learn the basic “do’s and don’ts” for creating a community garden project and explore the process of successfully initiating a community garden. Training will also cover; the benefits, and issues faced by community gardening projects, as well as looking at a number of successful case studies from across Ireland.

This training module will pay particular attention to biodiversity in the SECAD area and will explore how community groups can best care for it. Learn how to create a habitat map that demonstrates the geographic distribution of different habitats within your community and surrounding environment.

Learn about the most common invasive species in your community and how to successfully identify them. Training will also include; creating a management plan and management and eradication techniques. The practical training session will allow you to get firsthand experience of indentifying and managing Himalayan Balsam.

This training session will demonstrate how you can protect and care for your coastline. Training will include; coastal erosion, coastal biodiversity, marine litter, coastal clean ups and the opportunities for establishing a Coastcare group. Also learn about the importance of sand dunes and gain hands-on experience of Marram Grass planting on the practical training session.

The range and diversity of rural networks in the UK and Ireland is explored in a report published today by the Carnegie UK Trust. The report entitled Rural Development Networks: a Mapping Exercise aims to understand the benefits of belonging to these networks and also the key challenges facing them in the current economic and political climate.

This report is the result of a scoping exercise carried out by the Carnegie UK Trust in June 2011 that sought to map rural community development networks throughout the UK and Ireland.  The research sought to identify why rural networks exist, their benefits to users and the key issues facing them, particularly in the current climate of public spending cuts.  More details on: http://www.ruralgateway.org.uk/en/node/5114

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney TD, confirmed on Friday last (17th February) that payments in respect of the second year of the Burren Farming for Conservation Programme (BFCP) would begin issuing to farmers from 17 February 2012.  This is an agri-environmental programme, which was open to all farmers, who farm in the Burren region in north Clare and south Galway using unspent single farm payment funds with the agreement of the EU Commission. The Programme is implemented in conjunction with the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and the Burren Life Project.

Full Press Release: http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/press/pressreleases/2012/february/title,61310,en.html

One of Northern Ireland’s leading figures in reform of the agricultural sector will address a public meeting this Sunday 19 February in the Harbour Hotel in Galway.

 Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development in the Stormont Executive Michelle O’ Neill will give an overview of her experience thus far in the ministerial post and make the argument for increased north/south co-operation with regard to agricultural and rural issues.

Full details – http://galwayindependent.com/stories/item/1125/2012-8/Northern-Agriculture-Minister-to-speak-in-Galway

The meeting will take place in the John B Keane Suite, at the Harbour Hotel, Galway City at 8pm.

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney TD, has signed into law, a new order to require anyone who is the owner/person in charge of any premises in which horses or other equines (such as donkeys, ponies etc) are kept to register their premises with the Department. This Order completes the Department’s commitment to have a full register of premises on which all farmed animals are kept. Currently premises where cattle, sheep, pigs or poultry are kept must be registered.

The Minister explained that the purpose of registration is simply to ensure that the Department has a full picture of where horses are located, so that it can alert owners quickly in the event of a contagious disease outbreak, quickly implement disease control measures and also give advice on appropriate precautionary, containment and control measures as soon as possible.

Full Details – http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/press/pressreleases/2012/february/title,61295,en.html

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney TD, today announced the opening of iNet, his Department’s online application facility for the Single Payment Scheme.

“I am delighted to be in a position to announce the opening of iNet for 2012” the Minister said, noting that “this is the earliest opening date for iNet since the system was initially introduced in 2007“. The Minister noted that over 54,000 applications were submitted through iNet under the 2011 Scheme, representing a cumulative seven-fold increase in the five years the facility has been available.

Full details – http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/press/pressreleases/2012/february/title,61251,en.html

The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Mr. Phil Hogan T.D.,  published a Draft Framework for Sustainable Development for Ireland for public consultation, on 23 December 2011.

Submissions on the draft are welcome by Wednesday 29th February 2012.  Details on -http://www.environ.ie/en/Environment/SustainableDevelopment/ConsultationFrameworkforSustainableDevelopmentforIreland/#d.en.29079

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney TD, on Tuesday last  announced the launch of a Beef Technology Adoption Programme, as a key element in driving the ambitious targets for the Beef Sector in Food Harvest 2020. Based on a discussion group model, the programme is intended to provide participants with the knowledge and the skills necessary to reduce costs and increase profit margins on their farms.

Full Press Release: http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/press/pressreleases/2012/february/title,61199,en.html

Measures will sustain and increase employment in food enterprises and aquaculture

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney TD on Monday last welcomed the launch of the Jobs Strategy. “The 17 agri-food measures in the Strategy set out clear actions, steps to be taken and time-lines in each case. They will support food and drink companies in sustaining jobs and expanding business in particular on the export front, in line with the Food Harvest 2020 vision of ‘Smart, Green Growth’. I am committed to the implementation of these measures and have already brought an Action Plan to the Food Harvest 2020 Committee. It is now an integral part of their planning. The general measures in the Jobs Strategy also include actions to improve access to credit across the micro sector, which had been a constraint on growth for small and micro companies”, said the Minister.

Full Press Release: http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/press/pressreleases/2012/february/title,61177,en.html