Our Food Roots, the quasi-quango established by Bord Bia and the food industry, has refused to confirm how much funding it has received from farmer-funded organisations.

The body was set up to ensure messages and communication among the agri-food sector is aligned and consistent.

Initially known as Project Connect, then Our Food Connects and now Our Food Roots, the new organisation is headed up by Tom Cronin and works out of the Bord Bia offices in Dublin.

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It has an interim board of directors chaired by former Department of Agriculture secretary general Tom Moran.

The Irish Farmers Journal understands that Our Food Roots has only received approximately half of the over €5m in funding pledged to it.

Neither NDC chair Eamon Carroll nor CEO Emma Walls would confirm how much money was given to Our Food Roots by the NDC, but the Irish Farmers Journal understands that the amount is north of €1m.

The NDC is primarily funded by dairy farmers through a milk levy and the amount given to Our Food Roots by the NDC is designed to represent the entire contribution by the dairy industry.

The Irish Farmers Journal understands that the meat sector has also contributed to the current funding of Our Food Roots.

However, Dawn Meats and ABP did not respond to queries by the Irish Farmers Journal about how much they have given Our Food Roots nor have IFA or ICMSA, which are also founding members of Our Food Roots.

Agri Aware is not currently part of Our Food Roots, but it is understood that talks are ongoing regarding future involvement.

Our Food Roots recently decided to partner with Certified Irish Angus, has funded a website on water quality and reports suggest it funded a special lecture in UCD. When asked by the Irish Farmers Journal what it has spent on these partnerships and the website, Our Food Roots declined to say.

Response

Our Food Roots also declined to comment directly on its funding to the Irish Farmers Journal. A statement from Tom Cronin said: “We were created to help bridge the growing disconnect between people and their understanding of where food comes from reconnecting the public with Irish food and farming, building trust through greater understanding. Our funding model is based on direct support from member organisations that share this aim and support our work to improve public understanding of farming and where food comes from in Ireland,” he said. He added that as the organisation was established in 2025, it is not creating an annual report for last year.