Our Food Roots, the new name for Project Connect which was spearheaded by Bord Bia and others to communicate on behalf of the agrifood sector, has an interim board of directors made up of representatives of the founding organisations.

Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal on Thursday 21 May, Our Food Roots executive director Tom Cronin said that a permanent board is expected to be appointed “later this year”.

The organisation is chaired by retired secretary general of the Department of Agriculture, Tom Moran.

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According to Tom Cronin, the interim board has “leadership representatives from IFA, ICMSA, NDC, Bord Bia, Dairy Industry Ireland, Tirlán, Dawn Meats, ABP and UCD”.

The latest filing at the Companies Registration Office shows that the following are directors of Irish Agri Food Matters Company Limited by Guarantee:

  • Kevin Cahill, who was recently appointed CEO of ABP group in the UK and was managing director of ABP in Ireland and also a board member of Bord Bia.
  • John Enright, who is also general secretary of ICMSA.
  • Karina Pierce, who is also a professor in UCD and a board member of Bord Bia.

  • Damian McDonald, who is also director general of IFA.
  • Emma Walls, who is also CEO of NDC.
  • Jim O’Toole, who is also CEO of Bord Bia.
  • Lisa Koep, who is also chief ESG officer at Tirlán.

    • Pat Sheahan, former chair of Dairy Industry Ireland, is listed as a director but has since stepped down and has been replaced in an interim capacity by Conor Mulvihill, director of Dairy Industry Ireland.

    John Murray, director of meat, food and beverages at Bord Bia, is listed as the company secretary.

    The organisation is operating out of the Bord Bia offices in Dublin.

    The Irish Farmers Journal reported this week that the NDC is contributing funds to Our Food Roots from the funding it receives from dairy farmers through the NDC levy.

    NDC CEO Emma Walls confirmed that the board of NDC has “approved direct funding to Our Food Roots, as a wider cross-sector initiative, for projects aligned with our objectives that it believes Our Food Roots can deliver effectively and efficiently. That direct funding amounts to approximately 7% of NDC’s annual levy income,” according to Walls.

    However, the Irish Farmers Journal is aware that a total of over €1m in farmer levy funding from the NDC has been pledged to Our Food Roots annually.

    UCD

    Executive Director of Our Food Roots Tom Cronin has also confirmed that the organisation is part-funding a new lecturer position in UCD.

    The Irish Farmers Journal understands that a significant proportion of the annual costs involved in this new position is being paid for by Our Food Roots.

    When questioned about governance at Our Food Roots, given UCD has a representative on the board, Tom Cronin said that “the interim board operates in line with standard good governance practices”.

    Karina Pierce, professor in the School of Agriculture and Food Science, and Frank Monahan, full professor, head of the school of Agriculture and Food Science at UCD, have been approached for comment.

    More to follow.