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Whitechurch farm has best quality milk
Dairygold Announces Winners of Milk Quality Awards
Dairygold milk supplier, Mr. Kevin Downing from Whitechurch, Co. Cork was declared overall winner of the 2017 Dairygold Milk Quality Awards. The award presentation took place at Springfort Hall Hotel in Mallow on Thursday night where Kevin and his wife Bernie were awarded for consistently supplying the best quality milk to Dairygold throughout 2017. Kevin has carried on an excellence in quality from his late father Michael, who won the same award in 2010 and sadly passed away three years ago.
The Downing farm located a few miles north of Cork city has a strong history of achievement in dairy farming. Kevin, his wife Bernie and Farm Manager Tom Carr, produce manufacturing milk and sell dairy stock from 160 pedigree Holstein Friesian cows.
The judges declared that while all 18 finalists demonstrated exceptional quality, the Downing farm was an excellent example of what good management and high standards of production can achieve with cows producing over 560kgs of solids at 4.3% fat and over 3.6% protein and a low average SCC. The Downings had also been awarded the Overall award for the East Cork region earlier that night.
Accepting the award Mr. Kevin Downing said, “This is a very proud achievement and wonderful recognition from Dairygold of our efforts. The standards of all the finalists was extremely high. It’s also naturally a sentimental achievement for us as my father won the award eight years ago. He had a very strong ethos for quality and was an absolute perfectionist – I’m proud that we have been able to continue that tradition and to maintain those same high standards in every aspect of our on-farm operations.”
Dairygold Chairman Mr. John O’Gorman commended Kevin and his team for their efforts. “Kevin and Tom operate an excellent farm with very well-kept facilities and they have a keen awareness of the importance of hygiene, safety and sustainability. The Downings are very deserving winners and we wish them every success for the future.”
Mr O’Gorman added: “As a dairy processor, Dairygold is constantly emphasising the importance of milk quality and to me what better way to reinforce the message than by recognising and rewarding best performance and practice across our supplier base. Our Milk Quality Awards are a very special night where our producers are at the heart of the occasion and celebrated for their achievements. The ethos of continuous improvement that we strive to instil within the organisation is very much evident across our milk supply base which is reflected in the €4.3 million in quality bonus payments to milk suppliers through the Balanced Scorecard last year.”
The Awards were based on 2017 milk quality data for all 2,900 Dairygold milk suppliers across counties Cork, Tipperary, Limerick and Clare. A shortlist was drawn up of three suppliers from each of the six Dairygold regions. These 18 finalists underwent adjudication by two independent judges Dr. Karina Pierce, University College Dublin and Mr. Don Crowley, Teagasc dairy specialist.
The judges visited all 18 shortlisted farms to review their farm enterprises first hand. The review takes account of Milk Quality, Dairy Facilities, Herd Health and Welfare, Sustainability and General Efficiencies and Farm Health and Safety. The Judges chose six regional winners and the overall winner was announced on the night.
The overall runners up were Thomas Horan from Cashel, Co. Tipperary and Timothy Roche from Dripsey, Co. Cork.
Guest speaker on the night was Professor Thia Hennessy, Dean of Cork University Business School, who gave an insightful address on Cork University Business School, its plans and ambitions and the long-established association between UCC and Dairygold.
Limerick Region
Regional Winner Mr Patrick Barry, Pallasgreen, Co. Limerick
Runner UP Ms Helen Lynch, Crecora, Co. Limerick
Runner Up Mr Andrew Gow, Murroe, Co.Limerick
East Cork Region
Winner Mr Kevin Downing, Whitechurch, Co. Cork
Runner Up Mr William Stack, Midleton, Co. Cork
Runner Up Mr Donal Lenihan, Whitechurch, Co. Cork
Mallow Region
Winner Mr Henry Fitzgerald, Castletownroche, Co. Cork
Runner Up Mr Donal O’Keeffe, Carrigavar, Co. Cork
Runner Up Mr Fintan McSweeney, Donoughmore, Co. Cork
Mid Cork Region
Winner Mr Timothy Roche, Dripsey, Co. Cork
Runner Up Mr Sean and Jerome Corkery, Rylane, Co. Cork
Runner Up Mr Michael and John Murphy, Ballinhassig, Co. Cork
Mitchelstown Region
Winner Mr Denis and Patrick Joyce, Fermoy, Co Cork
Runner Up Mr John Reidy, Mitchelstown, Co Cork
Runner Up Ms Anne Fitzgerald, Kilavullen, Co. Cork
Tipperary Region
Winner Mr Thomas Horan, Cashel, Co. Tipperary
Runner Up Mr Thomas Ryan, NewsInn, Cashel, Co. Tipperary
Runner Up Mr Matt McEniry, Outrath, Cahir, Co. Tipperary
