Michael O’Brien and Eilis Gleeson from Co Kerry have won the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA) national photography competition, which is run in conjunction with Hedgerow Ireland.

The winners were presented with their cheques at the ICMSA AGM on Monday 2 December at the Limerick Radisson Hotel.

The winner of the under-18 category was Michael O’Brien, who took first prize for a photo of his father's Jersey cows grazing off a rosehip-festooned hedge on the family farm in Firies, Co Kerry.

Michael O’Brien's winning entry.

The winner of the senior over-18 category was Eilis Gleeson, whose photo was of her father Tim walking down a boreen on their farm in Gneevguilla.

Bounded by typical Irish country hedges, the ICMSA said that the photo "speaks" to thousands of farm families and rural inhabitants who know that situation and those hedges so well.

Eilis Gleeson's winning entry.

Presenting the cheques, ICMSA president Denis Drennan said the organisation was delighted to sponsor the Hedgerow Ireland competition.

Hedgerow Ireland, he said, plays a critical role in enhancing biodiversity, the heritage and practical roles of hedges could not be overstated.

"[The] ICMSA was always looking for opportunities to show the real commitment of their farmer-members to the environment and nature.

"The massive volume of entries to the competition showed the appetite of the public and the growing appreciation and awareness of the critical role and indispensability of our rural hedges," he said.

Alan Moore represented Hedgerow Ireland at the presentation and also present was general secretary of the Department of Agriculture Brendan Gleeson.