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Food and Drink Awards showcase importance of setting sustainability strategies and objectives

Origin Green is Ireland’s national food sustainability programme. It is a voluntary programme led by Bord Bia that brings together farmers, food producers, retailers and food service operators with the common goal of sustainable food production. This month we are looking at our Food and Drink Sustainability award winners. The Food and Drink Awards showcase excellence across the Irish food, drink and horticulture industry.

Recently, Bord Bia presented nine awards for excellence to some of Ireland’s foremost organisations and brands at the biennial Food and Drink Awards in Dublin’s RDS. Companies entered across seven categories: Consumer Insight, Brand Marketing, Export Growth, Domestic Success and Sustainability.

Two of the nine awards were in the area of sustainability. The recognised Origin Green member companies that have planned and executed significant sustainability commitments in relation to sourcing, resource efficiency, packaging and contributions to their local community.

Two of the nine awards were in the area of sustainability. The Sustainability Award recognised Origin Green member companies that have planned and executed significant sustainability commitments in relation to sourcing, resource efficiency, packaging and contributions to their community. The Sustainability Project Impact Award honoured companies that have demonstrated outstanding impact from a specific project.

Awards Shorlist

Shortlisted companies for this award included ABP Food Group, Butlers Chocolates, Carbery, Flahavans, Heineken Ireland, Irish Fish Canners, Keoghs, Glanbia Ireland and Kepak.

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ABP Food Group won the Sustainability Award. The company received this award for achieving ambitious sustainability targets ahead of schedule, and for creating what judges described as a “sustainability culture that permeates every part of the business”. The judges commented: “Having achieved their ambitious sustainability commitments ahead of schedule, ABP Food Group continues to forge ahead with impressive and ambitious new targets – an inspiring achievement for others to follow.”

Heineken Ireland was selected as winner of the Sustainability Project Impact Award. The company received this award for successfully illustrating excellence in both corporate and public sustainability, outlining six areas of focus and detailing significant improvements in all areas. The judges commented: “The entry clearly demonstrated the impact of Heineken’s projects on raw material sourcing, manufacturing processes and social sustainability across the corporation, ultimately benefitting the business, the customer and the environment.”

Speaking at the event, Tara McCarthy, CEO of Bord Bia CEO, stated: “As Ireland's largest indigenous industry, it is important to recognise the achievements and ongoing progress of the sector. We are delighted to honour the talent, imagination and sheer professionalism that is at the heart of the industry’s current success and which will secure its continued growth and expansion.

“The winning companies have showcased the importance of setting clear business strategies and objectives, informed by consumer and market insights, and adopting a company culture which encourages both innovation and imagination. And all of this is underpinned by strong leadership and, no doubt, a lot of hard work.”

To find out more about the awards and to see details of the other Food and Drink Awards winners, go to the News & Events section on the Bord Bia website, www.bordbia.ie

Pictured: Bord Bia CEO Tara McCarthy (left) presents the Sustainability Award to Eoin Ryan and Fiona Geraghty of ABP Food Group