For the next four months, I am working in Chicago with Fair Oaks Farms and Dairy Management Inc My work focuses on a number of areas, including renewable energy and explores how engaging in sustainability issues can create new revenue streams for farmers. Being an Irishman in Chicago, Illinois has made for an easy transition. The Irish have emigrated in large numbers to Chicago since the 1830s and by 1850, Irish immigrants accounted for approximately one-fifth of the city's population. Today, the city is home to a proud Irish-American community and this is never more apparent than when strolling the corridors of Dairy Management Inc., the national organization that builds demand for U.S. dairy products. Funded by America’s nearly 49,000 dairy farmers, the large organisation’s offices are marked with names including Fitzgerald, Gallagher, Maloney, Monaghan, McMahan, O'Leary and O’ Brien.

The U.S. market is growing increasingly important for the Irish food and drink sector. Approximately 70% of our exports to the U.S. are made up of alcohol beverages, with Irish whiskey accounting for the vast majority of this; followed by cream liqueur, Guinness and more recently poitín and craft beers. However, it is not just in the bars and restaurants of the Midwest that we share commonalities with our American neighbours (and distant relatives).

America’s dairy farmers have a lot in common with their Irish counterparts; a strong work ethic, long hours and a vulnerability to the elements. Like Irish farmers, who in recent times have been confronted with damaging weather conditions, farmers in the state of Indiana, where Fair Oaks Farms is located, faced a particularly tough challenge this winter; record levels of snowfall. At the start of January, bad conditions led to the closing of interstate highways, halting logistics and leading to millions of dollars of losses for the state economy.

The 35,000 cows at Fair Oaks Farms were relaxed and happy though. The enclosed freestanding stalls that they live in allow them to walk around freely while being protected from the harsh weather. Fair Oaks Farms are proud of their animal welfare standards and have launched a visitor’s centre to showcase their set-up. By offering the public a fun, close-up look at sustainable dairy farming, it has become the most visited dairy farm in the U.S., with over 400,000 visitors annually.

My respect for food certainly increased since I began working with Bord Bia on the Origin Green Ambassador programme last September, yet working with Fair Oaks Farms and Dairy Management Inc. has definitely provided me with a new level of appreciation for dairy production. The sheer amount of work, employed by both the cows and farmers, to produce the perfect glass of milk is nothing short of admirable. When I raise a glass with my new colleagues this week, it will be milk that we’re drinking.

As an Origin Green Ambassador, it is my job to promote to an international audience the ambitious activities being undertaken by Irish farmers and companies to measure and reduce their environmental impacts. Moving abroad as part of this programme is one effort by the ten current Ambassadors towards positioning Ireland globally as a world-class source of sustainably produced food and drink.