Some 83% of the fruit and vegetables we consume are not Irish. We now import 70,000 tonnes of potatoes each year — as well as tens of thousands of tonnes of apples, carrots, onions and cabbage. In a special report, we investigate where our food comes from and why it matters.

Meet our local food pioneers — men and women who run their businesses with a desire to do right by the planet.

CIDER apple production has increased significantly with 154 hectares produced by fourteen growers last year, the latest census on the overall industry has revealed.