The Waterford blaa is a bread product so unique that the European Comm-ission has shortlisted it for inclusion on its Database for Protected Designations.

AS the value of Irish food and drink exports approaches a record €9 billion in 2011, the key contribution of Jameson Irish whiskey was recognised last night when it won the Bord Bia Food and Drink Export Award.

KEY figures in West Cork’s food industry are working with University College Cork (UCC) to develop Ireland’s first masters in organic horticulture on a renowned estate.

TIGHTER control of use of antibiotics in humans and farm animals is likely — driven by the government of Denmark, which has pledged to campaign against antimicrobial resistance as a priority when it takes over the EU presidency next January.

BANKS have money to lend to small food companies but only if they are presented with a credible export-focused business plan, according to a leading banker.

PIONEERING entrepreneurs who have invested €200 million in renewable energy are on the verge of leaving the sector, yesterday’s Teagasc National Bioenergy Conference heard.

PROTECTING the Irish agri-food sector against the threat of a Mercosur deal is top of the agenda for Agriculture, Marine and Food Minister Simon Coveney as he attends his first EU Agriculture Ministers meeting in Brussels today.

A NEW €8 million sheep fencing and mobile handling scheme will be open for applications from November 1, Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Minister Brendan Smith announced yesterday.

IT was not just the glorious sunshine that had farmers in a good mood at Tullamore Show last Sunday.

A RESEARCH partnership has been launched in Limerick Institute of Technology to prove the benefits of organic milk.

FARMERS can once again apply for support under the Organic Farming Scheme and for grants under both the on-farm and off-farm schemes for the development of the sector.

THE outcome of upcoming negotiations on the future of the Common Agricultural Policy after 2013 will be pivotal in determining the future prospects for the development of Irish agriculture up to 2020.

IRELAND has welcomed a commitment to the future of the Common Agriculture Policy by 22 European Union farm ministers at a meeting in Paris.

A NEW body, Forás Orgánach, has been set up to drive forward the development of the organic sector in Ireland.

HEAVY weekend rain has added to the difficulties of grain farmers trying to save their crops in what is proving to be one of the most difficult harvests in years.

A REVIEW of the organic farming scheme, under which support is paid to farmers in the sector, has been announced.

PRIMARY school children who planted seeds in their classrooms last February yesterday enjoyed the fruits of their labour.

A new state agency to monitor animal feed must be set up to prevent a reoccurrence of December’s pork contamination crisis, it was claimed today.

INSTANT brand recognition is crucial in a world where consumers are making up their minds in split seconds, according to European agriculture and rural development commissioner Marian Fischer Boel.

A CULTURE based on locally produced food, now assuming a greater importance due to the credit crunch, will be celebrated at the Waterford Festival of Food in Dungarvan and surrounds this weekend.

WE will all be farmers soon, if Green Party Food Minister Trevor Sargent achieves his aim. He has launched a campaign to encourage home-growing of food, and told those interested in community gardens and allotments to take advantage of the long evenings, and get gardening.

IRELAND’S €417 million food and drink trade with Germany could be boosted further with increased exports of organic produce, it was revealed yesterday.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen will today try to secure investment from top Japanese business executives as he continues a 70-firm trade mission to the country.

FEARS were last night raised that leading pig farmers could benefit to the tune of €1 million each under the Government compensation package while ordinary workers are ignored.

THE organic food retail market is expanding in Ireland, but it is still some way off the Government’s growth target.

AGRICULTURE Minister Brendan Smith has rushed legislation into the Dáil to release €50 million to compensate processors affected by this month’s recall of pork products.

TRACEABILITY of pork at slaughter and afterwards is on a basis of batch — which may be a day’s production.

MORE than 1,000 farmers flocked to a meeting on the future of the €400 million sheep sector in Tullamore, Co Offaly, last night, but they also vented their anger to Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Minister Brendan Smith about the Government budget cuts in agriculture.

THE decisions to suspend new applications for Early Retirement and Young Farmer Installation schemes for 2009 were taken reluctantly, Food Minister Brendan Smith told the Macra na Feirme rally in Salthill, Galway.

MORE than 50 events are planned nationwide as part of Bord Bia’s National Organic Week (September 15-21).

A MINORITY of rogue operators who might be seeking to make a “quick buck” out of organic food markets were warned yesterday that they will not get away with it.

THE current round of world trade talks in Geneva, which pose a major threat to farming and agri business in Ireland, look set for an end game.

IRELAND’S €360 million food and drink trade to Italy was mainly driven by a surge in beef exports over the past five years, it was revealed yesterday.

Food Minister Trevor Sargent will launch Trinity College Dublin’s first food week today.

THE conservation of heritage varieties will be one of the areas promoted in Ireland this year, to mark International Year of the Potato.

TESTS have revealed 24 imported cattle in one consignment had been exposed to bluetongue in the past but are free of the virus, Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Minister Mary Coughlan disclosed last night.

FINE flavoured meats and superb cheeses have scooped Ireland’s culinary Oscars, announced in Dublin yesterday.

A GRANT aid package of €9.4 million under the grant scheme for the development of the horticulture sector under the National Development Plan was announced yesterday by Food Minister Trevor Sargent.

IT is appropriate that the national potato conference and trade show should be held in Dublin today, St Valentine’s Day, because the Irish people have had a love affair with the humble spud for hundreds of years.

A COMMON approach among local councils in dealing with farmers markets is being sought by Food Minister Trevor Sargent.

FORMER Food Minister Ned O’Keeffe, has asked Agriculture Minister Mary Coughlan if her attention has been drawn to the fact the European Commission has adopted proposals that aim to streamline and extend the rules pertaining to the registration of regional trade marks.

MILK quota trade on the third exchange scheme was the strongest to date, Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Minister Mary Coughlan has announced.