Country Choice came away as winners of the Good Food Ireland Irish Language Award 2013. Peter Ward and his two glamorous daughters featured on our cover just last June. In an interview with Maria Moynihan, Peter labelled Eliza and Evie (what gorgeous names!) his “Gucci princesses”. Peter has been producing Irish artisan products from the best of Irish ingredients at the milk market in Limerick and his Country Choice store in Nenagh for a long time; this accolade is well deserved.

The Good Food Ireland Shop of the year went to URRU Culinary Store, which is based in Bandon, Co Cork, and featured on the front cover of Country Living back in March 2010. Maria Moynihan described the shop as an “assault on the senses” with bowls of glistening olives, bottles of sparkling lemonade, trays of dainty tarts and rounds of farmhouse cheeses. Congratulations to proprietor Ruth Healy.

Good Food Ireland Producer of the Year (East) was featured here just three weeks ago when Aisling Hussey interviewed Fiona and Malcolm Falconer. They left a hectic life in London and moved to Monamolin in Co Wexford, and set up Wild About, a company producing chutneys, preserves, cocktail bases, dressings and pestos, using ingredients foraged in their own garden.

Irish Atlantic Sea Salt was deemed winner of the Entrepreneurial Award at the recent Bord Bia Food & Drinks Awards 2013, but Irish Country Living had already recognised them for their efforts back in April of this year in our FBD Women & Agriculture Awards when Irish Atlantic Sea Salt took away the runner-up gong for agri-business and innovation. Congratulations to founder Aileen O’Neill.

Keogh’s Crisps were nominated for the Producer of the Year (East). This Dublin-based company has featured on the pages of Irish Country Living on several occasions, not least in June 2011 when the family members lined up together with their potato plants all around them in an image that many readers may remember. Congratulations guys.

Irish Country Living readers and indeed Women & Agriculture Conference attendees will be very familiar with Valerie Kingston of Glenilen Farm who was the agri-business innovation winner in our FBD Women & Agriculture Awards in May 2011. Glenilen Farm have done it once again with a nomination for Producer of the Year (South) at this year’s Good Food Ireland Awards. Glenilen products are now available in most major supermarkets and are the perfect dessert treat.

Another former speaker at the Women & Agriculture Conference is Síle Gorman of Gorman’s Clifftop House & Restaurant, a business which was not only nominated for one but two awards at this year’s Good Food Ireland Awards. Gorman’s could be found in both the Culinary Haven of the Year category and Best Use of the Irish Language category. Well done to Síle and to her partner Vincent.

Tinahely Farm Shop was nominated for the Food Shop of the Year at the Good Food Ireland Awards this year. The owners of this business – Philip and Rebecca Hadden – appeared on the front cover of Irish Country Living with their three children in August and told Maria Moynihan their story of the move from farming to retail and hospitality.

The Burren Smokehouse & Visitor Centre appeared on the cover of Irish Country Living in November 2010 under the headline “Where business is smokin’”. The headline wasn’t far from the truth as The Burren Smokehouse has come to our attention on many occasions since, not least for its nomination in the Producer of the Year (West) category at this year’s Good Food Ireland awards. Keep up the good work. CL