Cork family awarded top prize at the 2026 NDC and Kerrygold Milk Awards
(Left to right): Orla, Rory, Fiona, Mary, Robert, Robert Jnr and Eimear Troy who are the overall winners of the 2026 NDC and Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards.
The Troy family have been announced as this year’s overall winners of the 2026 National Dairy Council (NDC) and Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards.
The Troys, situated in Corrough, Newtownshandrum in Co Cork, supply Kinisla, who put them forward for the award.
Robert Troy, a fifth-generation farmer, manages the farm alongside his wife Mary and their five children, Rory, Robert Jr, Fiona, Orla and Eimear. The farm hosts 425 cattle, a herd which sits in the top 1% nationally for EBI.
On the farm, the children all pitch in, sharing responsibilities surrounding grassland management, milking, calf feeding, animal husbandry, vaccinations, machinery, building maintenance and electronic repairs.
In 2025, the Troy herd delivered an average of 407 cows that produced 202,617kg milk solids with 4.49% butterfat and 3.37% protein.
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Calving runs from February 1 to mid-April, with the breeding season beginning in early May and running to the end of July on the Troy’s farm, with the herd dry in December and January.
The farm’s grazing platform has clover across the entire platform and has been able to reduce its carbon footprint to 0.77.
In 2017, the farm’s footprint scored a 0.92, but the family have worked hard to reduce it via fertile, low-maintenance cows, compact calving, grass utilisation, and lowering their dependence on purchased feed.
With clover established across their entire grazing platform, protected urea accounts for all chemical nitrogen inputs to the soil, with slurry application targeted by soil need. Through Kerry's Evolve programme and two EIP projects, the family has planted trees each winter; 200 more trees were planted in 2025, alongside bird and owl boxes.
The Troys have also fenced watercourses and created buffer zones, two ponds and a reed-bed system, with any run-off from the concrete yard also trapped and naturally filtered before water reaches the River Deel.
Minister for agriculture, Martin Heydon, said: “My warmest congratulations to this year’s overall winner of the NDC and Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards, the Troy family from Co. Cork and to all of this year’s finalists and category winners.
"Ireland’s reputation for producing high-quality, sustainable dairy is built every day on the dedication, expertise, commitment and hard work of family farms across the country.”
Chief executive of Ornua, Conor Galvin, said: “This year's finalists represent the very best of Irish dairy farming, demonstrating exceptional standards in milk quality, farm management and environmental stewardship, while also recognising the importance of inspiring and encouraging the next generation of dairy farmers.
"Together, these standards ensure Irish grass-fed dairy continues to set the benchmark globally, and through Kerrygold, Ornua is proud to bring these qualities into the lives and homes of millions of consumers around the world every day.”
NDC CEO, Emma Walls, said: “Congratulations to the Troy family and Kinisla on this fantastic achievement. The NDC and Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards are an opportunity to recognise the people, passion and hard work behind the high-quality dairy produced on farms across Ireland."
Celebrating the other finalists, she continued: “We are delighted to celebrate their achievements and to recognise the important contribution dairy farming families make to Ireland’s food story and our international reputation for quality dairy. These 12 farming families play an important role in the NDC’s work to advocate for Irish dairy farmers, helping us to share their stories and showcase the pride and commitment that underpin dairy farming in Ireland.”
The 2026 NDC and Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards Finalists and Award Winners include:
- Kinisla – Troy Farm, Newtownshandrum, Co Cork - Overall Winner & Milking Hygiene & Facilities Award winner.
- ArraTipp Co-op – Breen Farm, Gorteen, Co Tipperary - Lowest Carbon Footprint Award winner.
- Aurivo Co-op – Kelly Farm, Ballyarrell, Co Donegal - Advocacy Award (Community & Industry Leadership) winner.
- Dairygold Co-op – Carroll Farm, Coolrus, Co Limerick - Grassland Management Award winner.
- Tirlán – Fitzgerald Farm, Portlaw, Co Waterford - Environmental Stewardship & Biodiversity Award winner.
- Bandon Co-op – Kelleher Farm, Tullyland, Co Cork.
- Barryroe Co-op – Kirby Farm, Ballinascarty, Co Cork.
- Centenary Thurles Co-op – Campion Farm, Graigue, Co Tipperary.
- Drinagh Co-op – O'Donoghue Farm, Maulatrahane, Co Cork.
- Lakeland Dairies – Loughrey Farm, Multyfarnham, Co Westmeath.
- Lisavaird Co-op – Buttimer Farm, Lyre, Co Cork.
- North Cork Creameries – Dennehy Farm, Kilbrin, Co Cork.
