This article is from page 51 of the 2008-05-06 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 51 JPG
IRISH people are not getting enough dairy products according to new re- search released by the National Dairy Council (NDC) last week. At the launch of their organsations strategic plan last week, NDC experts started their commitment to tackle the issue. According to consumer research, four in five adults aged 15 and older claimed to consume milk everyday, yet almost 30 per cent stated they were not consuming the three serv- ings of dairy a day as recommended by the Department of Health.
In addition to this the survey found that 55 per cent of people believed that butter is fattening and detrimen-
tal to their health while 72 per cent said that butter is not good for cho- lesterol levels.
“While there is a high level of agreement on the importance of milk and dairy products in terms of their health and nutritional benefits, it is also clear from this research, that this is not being translated into behaviour and there is clearly a problem with consumer perception of milk and dairy products in these increasingly health conscious times,” said NDC Chief Executive Helen Brophy.
“It is also worrying to note that more than 30 per cent of people do not agree that milk is a natural un- processed food. This image and these attitudes must be tackled as a
matter of urgency and this is a key objective of our new Strategic Plan.”
The new five year Strategic Plan, entitled Dairy: Food for Life, was launched at a large industry event in Dublin and in advance of the open- ing session of the European Dairy Marketing Forum.
Speaking at the launch, Minister of State at the Department of Agricul- ture, Fisheries and Food, Mary Wal- lace, welcomed the new approach.
“The dairy sector is of vital im- portance to Ireland. It provides em- ployment for around 34,000 farmers, workers in the processing sector and those engaged in support and ancil- lary services,” she said.
“Some 85 per cent of Irish dairy
products are exported representing one quarter of all food and drink ex- ports. In 2007 that trend continued, despite the difficulties caused by the dollar exchange rate.
“Last year exports increased by 13 per cent to €2.36 billion, a record performance. Against this back- ground it is very encouraging to see that the National Dairy Council is focused on meeting the challenges which lie ahead.”
Coinciding with the NDC strategy launch, the inaugural meeting of the European Dairy Marketing Forum will take place, which is made up of leading dairy marketing executives from companies and dairy market- ing organisations across Europe.