When you mention the name Dr Noel Cawley in equestrian circles, two things quickly spring to mind – the 13-year sponsorship by Kerrygold of the Dublin Horse Show and the horse-breeding programme he conducts along with his daughter, Lisa.

He is best known in the business world for his 32-year tenure at the Irish Dairy Board, the last 18 of those as CEO up to his retirement in 2006, and his CV makes an extensive read. His long list of chair posts includes Teagasc throughout the decade up to 2018 and the Irish Horse Board (IHB) from 1993 to 2001. He has also been a non-executive director and consultant to a number of companies and organisations.

He is currently chair of the International Dairy Federation Ireland, the review body for National Animal Health Strategy and the Food Safety and Authenticity Committee at the Department of Agriculture.

College

From Gurteen in Sligo he went to secondary school at St Nathy’s College in nearby Ballaghadereen and then graduated from University College Galway with first class honours in science before doing a PhD at University College Dublin.

“I then went to the US for a while as a post-doctorate fellow on a Fulbright Scholarship,” he says.

I loved every aspect of the job, and by the time I finished we had a turnover of £2bn

He married Anita in Berkeley, California, before taking up a job in Guinness Harp in England, and in 1974 joined the Irish Dairy Board where he was appointed CEO in 1989. The company had only three previous CEOs – Sir Anthony O’Reilly, Joe McGough and Brian Joyce.

“I loved every aspect of the job, and by the time I finished we had a turnover of £2bn. You were taking product from the co-ops and selling it around the world, and you were affecting the income of a lot of families around Ireland. It had a huge influence on local communities,” he points out.

Dairy business

When asked how he thinks the dairy industry is doing now compared to then, he replies: “When I joined the Dairy Board I think there were at least 50,000 dairy farmers. It’s now down to 18,000 so there’s far fewer but with larger herds. However it’s an economically sustainable business now. The current issues are the effect on climate change and the use of fertiliser, and solutions certainly have to be found. Teagasc have a plan to reduce the methane emissions ... and the EU of course have plans too. But we have to be careful we don’t overdo things because the Dutch, the Danes, the French and the Germans are still enormously bigger than us, and we have very little chance to grow.”

Horses

Noel’s fascination for horses goes back to the home farm where they were used for ploughing, mowing and showing in his childhood days: “They’ve always been part of my background, and when I came back to Ireland I bought a couple of mares.”

During his career at the Dairy Board he treasured the time spent with them: “No matter how busy I was, I’d come home here at night and go down to the stables, and when I was surrounded by the horses I could forget about all the pressures at work – it was really therapeutic, and it still is.”

We had a day out for the dairy farmers and they came in their thousands to the show every year

The Kerrygold sponsorship at Dublin Horse Show ran from 1989 to 2002. Throughout the 1990s, the show attracted a TV audience of over 200m across Europe, the US and Asia.

“One of our major markets was Germany where showjumping is a major sport and we got wonderful coverage there. We had a day out for the dairy farmers and they came in their thousands to the show every year, and we brought all our clients too. It was a great sponsorship deal for everyone involved,” Noel points out.

He wasn’t very visible during show week because he was busy out in the loose-schooling ring selling three-year-olds. And he’s been doing that ever since.

Big winners

Now he has 10 mares, his foals and young horses are big winners, and the world-famous stallion Cruising continues to play a big role in the breeding programme he runs from his Kildare home. “I bred 63 by Cruising, and I believe his broodmares are as good as you’ll get anywhere in the world!”

One of his great favourites is the 16-year-old Rincarina by Cruising out of Diamond Ballerina by Diamond Lad who won the RDS six-year-old final, nine Irish Grand Prix classes and international competitions in Italy and Belgium. She’s a full-sister to the 1.60m Grand Prix winner Solerina, and her foal by For Pleasure was 2019 Horse Sport Ireland Foal Champion.

Another is Golden Exchange by Cruising out of Ballinakill Clover by Clover Hill, an Irish Grand Prix winner who topped the RDS six-year-old final and a full-sister to the Nations Cup horse Cruise on Clover.

Foal champion

“This year has been great, we won the Cavan Classic with Lissadell (five-year-old mare by Plot Blue out of Winter Cruise by Cruising) and the foal Championship again,” Noel points out.

His latest champion colt foal, Tangerado is by the Belgian Warmblood Tangelo van de Zuuthoeve out of the Irish Sport Horse Cruise Leaf who is by Cruising. Cruise Leaf’s 10-year-old son, Ballypatrick Flamenco, won the Grand Prix at Valencia in Spain last month. There’s quality and consistency all over these pedigrees, and that’s what Noel says is vital.

There are plenty of nice fillies for sale, and plenty of people willing to advise

“You have to start with a good bloodline and define exactly what you are setting out to achieve, whether you want to produce a top-class showjumper, draught mare, eventer or Connemara. There are plenty of nice fillies for sale, and plenty of people willing to advise,” he says. His own next target is to breed from a mare that has competed successfully at 1.60m level.

It’s a lifestyle that Noel loves and thrives on. “There’s always something happening with horses and I really enjoy it. The lockdown hasn’t affected me because I’m so busy, and anyway the horses are the perfect therapy,” he concludes.