He feels that by having a tangible link for consumers in an urban setting which they can witness first-hand and engage in, that people can make more informed and educated decisions regarding the food they eat. That trust can be built between urban consumers and rural producers. He believes that the daunting future facing the agricultural industry needs the will and support of consumers to drive the decisions made in farms all around the world. These decisions include choosing to adopt agricultural practices which regenerate and promote truly healthy soil and buoyant eco-systems full of diversity.

Brian grew up in Bishopstown in the suburbs of Cork City and has a Bachelors Degree in Computer Science from UCC. Managing Director of Central Floral Supplies for the past 12 years, Brian’s background is mainly in Floriculture and the wholesale supply of fresh flowers and plants to the floristry market in Ireland.

In March of 2020, Brian was forced to close his wholesale flower business due to the COVID-19 lockdown and he engaged in a rooftop farming project in the heart of Cork City, namely Cork Rooftop Farm. Through considerable social and main-stream media attention, a viable business emerged from the lockdown with a focus to connect urban consumers with their produce using regenerative and sustainable techniques.

He plans to travel to Northern and Central America, Australia, Singapore and Europe as part of his Nuffield Scholarship.

A Framework for Urban Agriculture

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Ray grew up in Currabinny, County Cork and although not farming himself he comes from a well known farming family in north Tipperary. He now lives in Ballyvaskin, West Clare with his partner Katie and their first child on the way.

Originally a secondary school teacher, Ray retrained in environmental science, acquiring a level nine postgraduate diploma with a focus on forestry and water quality. He also holds a BA and H.Dip in Education.

He currently works for An Taisce, Ireland’s National Trust. Most of his work is dedicated to on-the-ground community engagement. His most recent project has been facilitating small community woodlands called “An Choill Bheag” with the Learning about Forests (LEAF) programme. He also does consulting work for the Hometree charity based in west Clare and runs the Tributary Talk series in Corks Nano Nagle Centre.

Ray is an advocate of returning trees and forests of all types to the Irish landscape. He believes native and commercial woodlands, hedgerows, riparian buffer strips and other forms of tree cover can deliver functionality and value to landowners as well as benefits to the wider community. These can include farm income diversification, carbon sequestration, mitigation of air and water emissions, regulatory compliance, increasing biodiversity and reducing flooding and soil erosion risk.

Ray is passionate about the future for rural Ireland but believes its long-term success lies in acknowledging its vulnerabilities. He sees trees as a key strategy in addressing these and firmly believes that they can exist alongside farming rather than displacing it.

Acquiring Social Licence to Return Trees to the Irish Landscape

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Alex from Trim, County Meath, grew up on a poultry and tillage farm. Alex’s parents, Bernard & Mary, pioneered commercial Free Range Egg production in Ireland in the 1980’s. He obtained a Bachelor of Agricultural Science (Food & Agribusiness Mgt) Degree from UCD in 2007.

Upon leaving university Alex spent ten years working in the world of fresh produce, which culminated in a senior commercial role. This involved travelling the world sourcing relevant produce for the supply to the Irish multiple retailers.

In 2013 while still working full time, Alex spearheaded the expansion of the existing family poultry farm, from 20,000 free range laying hens to 40,000 hens. In 2018, due to the commitment required, Alex made the decision to focus on full time farming, with a view to further expansion.

How to adapt to market demands and change in the Irish Egg industry

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Brendan will explore how others created successful alternative primary industries and what were the critical success factors with a particular focus on learning from established and emerging sheep dairy industries across the world. He will also explore how a co-op can play a role in the growth of this sector.

Brendan is a UCD Science graduate and has completed a European Erasmus MSc in Food Innovation and Product Design, where he studied in Paris and in Lund University, Sweden.

In 2016, Brendan and his brother, Michael, saw an opportunity to get into farming by establishing a sheep dairy farm. Their business is called Sheep Milk Ireland Ltd. The business is currently supplying a number of cheesemakers across Munster.

Over the past number of years, they have scaled the business and are developing innovative sheep milk powder products. They also completed the Food Works accelerator programme run by Bord Bia, Teagasc and Enterprise Ireland, and Enterprise Ireland has since invested into the business.

Sheep Milk Ireland aims to create a large-scale sheep dairy industry in Ireland and offer other farmers the opportunity to get into the industry.

Brendan intends to travel to France, New Zealand, Australia and China during the course of his Nuffield Scholarship.

Creating alternative primary agri- food industries: the feasibility of establishing a large- scale co-operative sheep milk industry in Ireland

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