This article is from page 34 of the 2007-09-11 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 34 JPG
INAGH cheesemakers, Siobhan Ni Ghairbhigh and John Harrington are celebrating this week, having scooped two major awards at the first Bord Bia organic competition.
The couple – who make St Tola Or- ganic Goat’s Cheese – were singled out for the overall best organic prod- uct prize as well as an award for best chilled/frozen product.
“We were absolutely delighted, par- ticularly because it wasn’t an award in a restricted section. We were up against everything from babyfood to full meals’, said Siobhan.
The couple have won many awards for their cheese in the past, and say they owe a huge part of their success to their four full time staff, Petru and Carmen Gal, Grainne Casey and
Guillemette Allut.
“Without them we couldn’t have achieved so much,” said Siobhan.
The couple said they were de- lighted even before the awards were announced “as these awards are a recognition of the importance of the organic food industry.”
St Tola has been made in Inagh since the early 1980’s. Originally made by Meg and Derrick Gordon, the business was taken over by their neighbour, Siobhan in 1999.
Since then, new premises have been built, the process has been brought up to HACCUP standards and in 2001, St. Tola became a registered organic producer with I.O.F.G.A, The Irish Organic Farmers and Growers Association. Both the farm and the cheesemaking operation are inspected individually, by LO.F.G.A
inspectors, twice a year.
Among the awards which St Tola has previously won are: 2006 British Cheese Awards gold and bronze med- als, 2005 Irish Farmhouse Cheese gold and bronze awards, 2005 IFEX Awards, bronze award, 2004 Irish Farmhouse Cheese Awards, Su- preme Champion and gold awards, 2002 British Cheese Awards, gold medal.
The awards, organised by Bord Bia in conjunction with the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, attracted more than 7/0 entries.
Bord Bia chief executive Aidan Seay UCM Oe A WALD RDUMAEloMo Nl et-velee trade and consumer awareness of Irish organic capabilities and cre- ate a platform for organic producers to demonstrate the broad range and high quality of products available.
“Organic food is one of the fastest erowing segments of the European food market and has a growth rate of 15% -20% in Ireland,’ he said.
“Bord Bia will continue to work with and support the organic sector with significant optimism towards its further development in Ireland.”
Mr Cotter said Bord Bia, in con- sultation with the Organic Market Development Group (OMDG), has drawn up a three-year marketing plan for the development of Ireland’s organic food market.