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The Lisavaird winter symposium presented the co-op’s suppliers with their first chance to meet new Carbery chief executive Jason Hawkins. Only in the Carbery hot seat since 1 January, the Kerryman gave a thorough presentation on dairy market outlook and he impressively dealt with questions from the floor.
The well attended event at Inchedoney Island Lodge and Spa Hotel, Clonakilty focused strongly on markets, with presentations from Hawkins and Tara McCarthy, CEO of Bord Bia.
Listen to “Carbery CEO Jason Hawkins” on Spreaker.
Introducing himself to the crowd Hawkins said: “I’m only a fortnight in the job but three questions keep coming up. Who am I and where do I come from? Secondly, what do I think of Carbery? And lastly, what’s the price of milk?”
Jason Hawkins chief executive of Carbery
After dealing with these questions Hawkins proceeded to give his outlook on dairy markets.
He said there are a number of issues to be aware of, including the stabilization of butter price, UK investment in cheese production and the fact that intervention stocks of skim milk powder (SMP) remain.
Bord Bia chief executive Tara McCarthy
Speaking in front of what Lisavaird chairman Paddy Ryan described as a ‘home audience’ for her, Tara McCarthy told those gathered that: “Sustainability demands continue to come in from consumers.”
She added: “Ireland is the only country where there are full assessments throughout the supply chain.”
The Clonakilty woman reminded farmers that they are all members of Origin Green and that Bord Bia is supporting dairy farmers through their co-ops while a help desk has been set up to help beef and lamb farmers. She also reiterated the fact that farmers need to be more aware of how the public view farming.
Finbarr Mulligan from UCD also gave an update on the performance of the Lyons high input/high output herd.
GM feed and sustainability
Questions from the floor were varied, with the panel members views sought on topics ranging from how we deal with genetically modified feed (GM), through to the perception of farming.
The topic of sustainability was also questioned from a few different angles. Farmers questioned what a sustainable milk price would actually constitute after paying themselves and whether the Origin Green brand needed to evolve in order to differentiate it from other countries looking emulate the idea.
Who is the new CEO at Carbery Group?
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