The Enterprise Ireland Innovation Arena awards will return to the National Ploughing Championships this year.

The competition, which is run in partnership with the National Ploughing Association, takes place annually, inviting businesses and innovators in the agritech sector to enter their pioneering agri-related products and services for consideration.

For the last two years, the awards have been held virtually. There are a number of prizes across several categories, and those who are shortlisted will be invited to showcase their products and innovative agritech solutions at the arena. The new innovations will be on display this year.

Last year’s competition attracted more than 50 entries, and the overall winner was Brandon Bioscience, from Kerry, which developed a seaweed-based biostimulant used in a new Terra range of granular nitrogen fertilisers that improve sustainable farming.

The award categories in this year’s competition include the established company innovator of the year award, the startup company innovator of the year award, the sustainable agriculture award, the agri-safety award and the young innovator of the year. The winners will be announced at Ploughing 2022.