Chief Executive’s Review

One Dairy Voice

We started off 2022 with a Manifesto, a strong direction on the future success of Ireland’s dairy industry. Irish dairy needs a central, consolidated voice, one that champions the industry not just in the wider agricultural sector and amongst legislators, but with the woman and man on the street – the consumer of dairy products – the people who, ultimately, grant us our social licence to produce. The NDC will be that voice.

Environmental Sustainability

2022 was the year when the challenge of what it takes to achieve national emissions targets became a reality with the implementation of the legal target of a 25% reduction in emissions by agriculture by 2030. People realised that, when the phrase ‘everyone must play their part’ is used, it means all of us. The dairy sector has been subjected to much criticism around its perceived negative environmental impact. The core criticism has been that expansion is causing irreparable damage to our water quality, our soils and biodiversity. The facts contradict these allegations. Firstly, there are now the same number of dairy livestock on Irish farms as were on our farms in 1986.

What has changed is the increased productivity of the current herd in comparison to 36 years ago. Milk output per cow has increased from an average of 3,500 litres per cow in 1984 to 5,300 litres per cow per lactation in 2021. That is the result of a progressive breeding strategy, so that the same numbers of cows produce increased amounts of milk. We need to realise that blanket criticism of farmers will get us nowhere. Farmers are, and will be, the caretakers of the environment, because no one else can do it. They are the ‘front-line troops’ that will adapt their management practices and adopt new and challenging standards just like they have done for generations.

Key Ndc 2022 Activity

Health And Nutrition

In collaboration with the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute, the NDC organised a lunchtime webinar on Emerging Treatment Approaches for Food Allergy. The webinar took place on 26th January and had 299 registrants, with 120 attending the live event. Attendees included dietitians, nutritionists, students, and practice nurses.

An NDC webinar took place for practice nurses on the key watchouts in the diets of Irish children and teens from the National Nutrition Surveys including the need to increase portions of fruit and veg as well as dairy.

NDC commissioned research into Osteoporosis awareness amongst 18–25 year-olds through Coyne Research in an omnibus survey to a sample of 2,000 adults which formed the basis to the press release for World Osteoporosis Day on 20th October.

FROM THE GROUND UP ADVERTISING & ADVOCACY

The next phase of From the Ground Up campaign involved three new sports ambassadors in 2022 when we recruited Olympic rower, Paul O’Donovan, Meath GAA player Vikki Wall and international rugby player Eimear Considine. To celebrate the launch of the new ads, we held a special press briefing for sports media at Sport Ireland in April. The briefing included a Q&A with the athletes and a section on nutrition with Dr Sharon Madigan. A large number of sports media attended resulting in strong press coverage.

2022 was the year when the challenge of what it takes to achieve national emissions targets became a reality with the implementation of the legal target of a 25% reduction in emissions by Agriculture by 2030.

NDC is proud to have secured Dairygold as a full member, effective from July 2022 for an initial period of 3 years. Increased membership provides additional scope for NDC to work on behalf of Irish Dairy Farmers with stronger impact.

EVOLVING TRADEMARK & BUILDING RELEVANCE

The transition to the new Trademark brand logo commenced with an aim of 75% of the existing portfolio re-branded by end of Q3. The Trademark Taskforce met to discuss the evolution of Trademark and the communication strategy which will underpin its progress. A stronger voice where the product portfolio and retailers present a communication opportunity which strengthens the producer’s Social Licence to Produce locally. The aim should be to roll out the mark on all dairy category products going forward which will provide a good opportunity to engage with retailers and activate in-store, highlighting the importance of locally produced dairy for Irish consumers.

Ndc At Bord Bia Bloom

The NDC sponsored a garden at Bord Bia Bloom for the first time in 2022. Designed by Sean Russell, the Sustainable Dairy Farm Garden resembled a traditional, old-style Irish country farm, complete with milk churns, dry stone walls, a mature grass clover pasture and an old open-structured farm outhouse. The garden was designed to emphasise the importance of grass-fed dairy animals in Ireland and the quality of milk which is produced. The garden provided an excellent platform to communicate the messages around sustainable dairy production to a largely urban audience in Dublin. A number of panel discussions took place over the course of the event and NDC secured extensive media coverage as well as winning two awards for the garden.

Ndc Farmer Advocacy Programme

As part of NDC’s ongoing farmer advocacy programme, we recruited 11 farmer ambassadors to tell the story of sustainable dairy production to Irish consumers. The Ambassadors are a team of people involved in the production of Irish dairy, who will act as advocates and spokespeople for Ireland’s family-farm-based, grass-fed dairy production system. They are champions for the many initiatives being employed to make Irish dairy more sustainable and environmentally-friendly – and they are all keen to speak about what they are doing and what needs to be done.

Ndc Membership

The NDC is proud to have secured Dairygold as a full member, effective from July 2022 for an initial period of 3 years. Increased membership provides additional scope for NDC to work on behalf of Irish Dairy Farmers with stronger impact.

The NDC continued its discussions with additional non-member co-ops with a view to securing their membership in the future, these included Tipperary Co-op, Drinagh Co-op and Lakeland Dairies.

Schools Activity

The NDC prepared for the final year of the EU funded 6-year programme for School Milk. To support Schools participating in School Milk Scheme, NDC prepared a pack of educational resources including a Moo Crew Resource Pack containing updated Moo Crew material, two animated videos, one of which will be suitable for primary school pupils and one appropriate for secondary school pupils. The purpose of these videos is to provide pupils with an understanding of how milk is produced, to call out our unique grass-based dairy production system and to underpin the role that dairy plays as part of a sustainable diet. The School Milk Scheme portal went live with 5 active suppliers using this platform with 392 schools registered and logging in to complete their claims. The portal is still in its infancy and not without adjustments and improvements to be made but it has been very well-received by all users. NDC ran some dedicated advertising for the School Milk Scheme and for refrigeration awareness in the IPPN magazine which goes out to Irish Primary School principals and in the latest edition of the Intouch magazine which is delivered into all schools in (Q4).

Eu Campaigns

2022 was the first of a two-year EU-funded campaign on sustainable milk – Milk. It’s Good to Know it’s Good. The pan-European campaign is being implemented to highlight the sustainability of the EU’s agriculture and dairy sector, stressing its beneficial role for climate action, the environment and population health. A €220k media plan was delivered in two bursts, in December 2022 and January 2023. The TV ad featured NDC Farmer Ambassador Nicholas Cooney and Rugby star Eimear Considine. The media plan also included sponsorship of Donal Skehan’s Christmas Cookery shows with supporting display and social.

The second year of the EU Climate programme enabled NDC to continually engage with key opinion leaders and academics on the important matter of “The role of Irish Dairy in a healthy and sustainable diet”. Over 40 features across radio and print media were achieved on this area.

The evolution of our dairy industry needs to be one that is long-term and sustainable in its strategy, delivering for both the farmer and the consumer while protecting our environment.

I would like to thank my Executive Team for their hard work and the ongoing support of my Board in 2022.

A €220k media plan was delivered in two bursts, in December 2022 and January 2023. The TV ad featured NDC Farmer Ambassador Nicholas Cooney and Rugby star Eimear Considine.

Zoë Kavanagh Chief Executive Officer