Ireland’s main salesman for our food is to set off into the sunset.

The Dealer can exclusively reveal that Bord Bia chief executive Aidan Cotter is to retire “early next year”. The food board confirmed that the process to replace Cotter has not yet commenced.

There are a number of options, though. Internally, director of markets Padraig Brennan is seen as a capable replacement for Cotter. Brennan only moved into this role earlier in 2016 following the departure of Michael Murphy to set up a yoghurt company. Friend of the farmers Joe Burke is an outsider, but capable nonetheless.

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Externally, there are a few whispers suggesting that Bord Bia and Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) could be combined into one entity, with former Bord Bia employee and current BIM chief executive Tara McCarthy taking up the role of boss of the amalgamated venture.

Back to Cotter. He will be remembered for the establishment of his pet project Origin Green as well as overseeing the growth of Irish food exports from €7.1bn to €10.8bn. However, farmers may not be as happy with performance around Quality Assurance and inspections.