This year our West Cork Farming Awards celebrate their 10th anniversary
The Southern Star in conjunction with the Celtic Ross Hotel originally set up the awards as a way to champion, recognise, and shine a light on the men, women, families, communities, organisations, and businesses that contribute to West Cork’s vibrant and vital agricultural and farming industry. Over the years we’ve celebrated many fantastic finalists and winners from all aspects of West Cork farming life and enjoyed dynamic and often emotional gala awards lunches at the Celtic Ross Hotel.
Every month, from April until October we will announce a new monthly recipient of a West Cork Farming Award in The Southern Star farming pages.
The gala awards lunch will then be held in November at the Celtic Ross Hotel where we will award trophies to all of our monthly winners and also announce the winners of our Hall of Fame award and West Cork Farming Family of the Year award also.
The Southern Star and Celtic Ross Hotel West Cork Farming Awards winner for the month of May is Nicole Keohane from Innishannon
(Photo: Andy Gibson)
NICOLE Keohane didn’t milk her first cow until she was 17 – but she was instantly hooked and is now driven to breaking down barriers that face young people who want to get involved in the agri sector.
The 25-year-old from Innishannon has achieved a considerable amount in the seven years since she left school, and combines her work as a dairy farmer, with a new role as technical support specialist with Datamars Livestock.
Read more about why we chose Nicole here.
The Southern Star and Celtic Ross Hotel West Cork Farming Awards winner for the month of April is Desmond Savage
(Photo: Andy Gibson)
AROUND a decade ago Desmond Savage could see the pressure mounting on farming as climate change began to dominate conversations. But to him, it seemed ‘too easy to point the finger of blame at farming, while the demand for fossil fuels grew exponentially.’
However, with over two decades experience working with global manufacturing companies, he was exposed to the latest technologies, which ultimately led him to create ingestible ‘Fitbits’ for cows and establish the award-winning agri company, Moonsyst.
Read more about why we chose Desmond here.
The Southern Star and Celtic Ross Hotel West Cork Farming Awards winners for the month of June are Paddy Barrett and John McNamara.
Paddy Barrett, (Carbery) and John McNamara, (Teagasc) on Shinagh Farm, Bandon. (Photo: Andy Gibson)
Since the Carbery Milk Quality Awards were launched in 2004 the standards being applied to milk production in the region have improved immeasurably.
How much that has to do with the actual awards is hard to know, says Paddy Barrett, one of the driving forces behind the initiative. What the Limerick man does know though is that farmers, particularly those from throughout this area, take fierce pride in their work, and key markers like SCC and TBC provide indisputable evidence of milk quality improving year on year.
It’s hard to believe that the Milk Quality Awards are almost 20 years old. Before they were established, each co-op had their own awards, but then John McNamara, Teagasc and Paddy Barrett, quality assurance manager at Carbery were tasked with coming up with a way to do it all under the Carbery umbrella, with the four co-ops combined.
Read more about why we chose Paddy and John here.
***
