Journal articles on the topic 'Irish dairy industry'

A resilient dairy business will be sustainable across all of the sustainability indicators, survive milk-price drops and be very profitable when milk price is high. The term resilient means able to ‘recover, respond, deal or withstand’ different internal and external challenges that may manifest themselves within the farm business from time to time. There is significant potential to increase efficiency and productivity at farm level when compared with the average farm nationally. The focus at a farm level must be about increasing grass growth and utilisation and converting that feed to milk solids (kg of milk fat and protein) sales at as low a cost as possible. Increasing labour efficiency by operating more streamlined work practices, using contractors and contract rearing of heifers will have a major impact on farm labour requirements.

AbstractThe Irish dairy industry is critically important to the economy and general well-being of a large section of the Irish population. Its quality, sustainability and maintenance are the key for a vibrant rural society in the future. Two important elements for the future of this industry include (a) the quality, marketing and sale of dairy products on the export market and (b) sustainability from the perspectives of people, planet and profit. This paper provides a short review of current scientific evidence in relation to a number of topics, each of which is important in maintaining and developing dairy product quality and the sustainability of the Irish dairy industry. The topics addressed in the paper are as follows: the parameters of milk composition; milk processing; hygiene quality and safety; farm management practices and the regulations that govern such practices; animal health and welfare; environmental impacts; economic implications for farm families and rural communities; and the overall future sustainability of the family-based dairy farm structure.

This Review describes the objectives and methodology of the DairyWater project as it aims to aid the Irish dairy processing industry in achieving sustainability as it expands. With the abolition of European milk quotas in March 2015, the Republic of Ireland saw a surge in milk production. The DairyWater project was established in anticipation of this expansion of the Irish dairy sector in order to develop innovative solutions for the efficient management of water consumption, wastewater treatment and the resulting energy use within the country's dairy processing industry. Therefore, the project can be divided into three main thematic areas: dairy wastewater treatment technologies and microbial analysis, water re-use and rainwater harvesting and environmental assessment. In order to ensure the project remains as relevant as possible to the industry, a project advisory board containing key industry stakeholders has been established. To date, a number of large scale studies, using data obtained directly from the Irish dairy industry, have been performed. Additionally, pilot-scale wastewater treatment (intermittently aerated sequencing batch reactor) and tertiary treatment (flow-through pulsed ultraviolet system) technologies have been demonstrated within the project. Further details on selected aspects of the project are discussed in greater detail in the subsequent cluster of research communications.

Listeria monocytogenes is a potentially lethal foodborne pathogen commonly found in the environment. European Union hygiene legislation places responsibility for safety on primary production facilities, including farms, as part of a policy to introduce traceability throughout the food chain. This study aimed to determine the occurrence of L. monocytogenes in the Irish dairy farm environment and in particular the milking facility. Two hundred ninety-eight environmental samples were collected from 16 farms in the southern region of Ireland. A number of farms within the group supply raw milk to the unpasteurized milk cheese industry. The samples taken included cow feces, milk, silage, soil, water, etc. Samples were enriched in Listeria enrichment broth and incubated for 48 h, followed by plating on chromogenic agar Listeria Ottavani & Agosti and further incubation of the plates for 24 to 48 h. Presumptive L. monocytogenes isolates were purified and confirmed by PCR targeting the hly gene. Overall, 19% of the samples (57 of 298) were positive for L. monocytogenes. These were serotyped using conventional and PCR methods; serotypes 1/2a, 1/2b, and 4b made up 78% of the typeable isolates. A correlation was found between the level of hygiene standards on the farm and the occurrence of L. monocytogenes. There was little difference in the occurrence of L. monocytogenes between farms supplying milk to the unpasteurized milk cheese industry and those supplying milk for processing. This study demonstrates the prevalence of L. monocytogenes in the dairy farm environment and the need for good hygiene practices to prevent its entry into the food chain.

The Irish cooperative movement in the dairy industry was driven from above, first by the philanthropic Irish Agricultural Organisation Society and then by the Irish Free State. Although the early cooperative movement has been linked with constructive unionism, this article highlights important continuities in the approach taken to cooperative creameries by the Irish Free State government in the 1920s. Using the problem of creamery management as a focus, it argues that the movement was unable to deliver on its stated goal of democratic empowerment of farmers. Instead, it was the means through which power was renegotiated between farmers, landlords and the state in the context of two crucial transitional moments.

This Research Communication describes the methodology used and the subsequent results obtained for an assessment of the environmental impact associated with the manufacture of dairy products in the Republic of Ireland. As the Irish dairy industry changes and grows, it is necessary to have a benchmark of the environmental performance of the sector if it is to remain sustainable in the future. In order to estimate the environmental impact, life cycle assessment has been implemented, which has been structured in accordance with the International Organisation for Standardisation guidelines. In this study, the environmental impact categories assessed are terrestrial acidification potential, cumulative energy demand, freshwater eutrophication potential, global warming potential, marine eutrophication potential and water depletion. The main Irish dairy products have been compared across these environmental impact categories in order to derive meaningful results. It is identified that packaging materials, particularly for infant formula, and energy usage, across each of the life cycle stages, should be targeted as these are the most significant contributors to the overall environmental impact.

SUMMARYA combined farm systems and processing sector model was used to determine the effect on industry profitability of changing from the current seasonal milk supply profile to a less seasonal milk supply profile. Differences in investment costs, product portfolio, product storage and financing costs at processor level were included in the analysis. It was found, based on the underlying model assumptions, that a less seasonal supply profile allowed better capacity utilization, enabled higher volumes of high-value products to be produced and generated higher net returns (€1540·7 million) for the processing sector than the seasonal milk supply profile (€1474·9 million); it therefore warranted paying a higher milk price to farmers. In contrast, at farm level the seasonal milk supply profile resulted in lower costs and higher net farm profit, with net margin per litre being 1·6 cents per litre higher relative to the less seasonal milk supply profile. Higher concentrate, labour, silage, machinery hire and heifer replacement costs in the less seasonal supply profile relative to the seasonal milk supply profile were the main factors that contributed to the lower farm profitability. From a national perspective, including processor and farm sector interests, the seasonal milk supply profile was more profitable by an estimated €83 million; the difference in costs at farm level outweighed the increased milk price at processor level found in the less seasonal milk supply profile.

Irish beef farms have experienced poor viability longitudinally, with industry and policy actors citing ‘crisis’ levels in 2013. A crucial differentiator between the beef sector and the dairy sector, which has higher farm incomes, is well-developed infrastructure of farmer-owned dairy processing and marketing co-operatives. To address the lack of representative farmer organisations and power imbalances in the beef supply chain, in 2016 the Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine (DAFM) legislated for the establishment of beef Producer Organisations (POs), facilitating beef producers to collectively strengthen their market positioning. While PO legislation is a significant development in potentially enabling supply chain integration of farmers, how the legislation is operationalised by Irish beef industry stakeholders will ultimately shape the nature and breadth of engagement with the PO model and, consequently, the impact of the legislation. In a context where there is little or no prior experience of such organisations in the beef sector, this paper presents an analysis of current stakeholder views in relation to the establishment of POs. Research involved a desk based review of the submissions made during the consultation period for the beef PO legislation and interviews with key informants in the Irish beef industry. We analysed Irish stakeholders’ views through the lens of lessons learned from the existing literature on how POs operate internationally. Results indicate some stakeholders’ perceptions of the need for a nationally coordinated approach in the establishment of an Association of POs, which concurs with the literature. However, stakeholders have not emphasised the benefits of Interbranch Organisations (IBOs), which involve vertical collaboration with other chain actors such as processors and retailers, an approach that has proven successful internationally. Nor have Irish stakeholders identified the potential of differentiating or premiumising beef products, which, according to international evidence, is necessary for improving profitability and farm-level incomes. Stakeholders identified the main threats to the future success of POs in Ireland as members’ lack of commitment and processors’ lack of willingness to engage with POs.

Ireland’s grass-based dairy system is relatively unique in industrialised countries in its focus on producing milk from grazed grass rather than increasing yields through non-forage feed. The environmental benefits of a grass-based dairy system have been promoted within Ireland and abroad. However, the means by which grass is produced is important. There have been environmental concerns about water pollution from nutrient leaching and increasing greenhouse gas emissions from the increased number of cows and higher fertiliser application in the Irish dairy sector. This paper uses qualitative interviews with Irish dairy farmers to assess: (1) how can we understand Irish farmer attitudes towards the grass-based system within a ‘good farmer’ theoretical framework? (2) How do concepts of extensive and intensive production fit with good farming norms within the grass-based system? (3) How could cultivation of multispecies swards, including legumes, fit with existing notions of good farming? The research finds that there had been a concerted efforts by researchers, advisory bodies and other actors to foster a definition of good farming to mean good grass management. This definition of good farming excluded the use of feed inputs over a certain level to increase yields but included the use of fertiliser to maximise grass production. There is scope to change the definition of good farming within the industry to include minimal use of fertiliser, for instance through the cultivation of multispecies swards including legumes and the skills and knowledge this involves. In terms of policy implications, the paper identified three strategies for government and industry to facilitate a definition of good farming which involves low fertiliser use: emphasising the cost-saving aspect of reducing fertiliser; identifying visible symbols of ‘good farming’ using multispecies swards; and co-producing the definition of good farming with a diverse range of stakeholders including farmers.

Genomics is a technology for increasing the accuracy with which the genetic merit of young potential breeding animals can be determined. It enables earlier selection decisions, thus reducing generation intervals and gives rise to more rapid annual rates of genetic gain. Recently, the cost of genomics has reduced to the point where it enables breeding-program costs to be reduced substantially. Ireland has been a rapid adopter of genomics technology in its dairy-cattle breeding program, with 40% of dairy-cow artificial inseminations in 2010 being from bulls evaluated using genomic information. This rapid adoption has been facilitated by a comprehensive database of phenotypes and genotypes, strong public funding support for applied genomics research, an international network of collaborators, a short path between research and implementation, an overall selection index which farmers use in making breeding decisions, and a motivated and informed breeding industry. The shorter generation interval possible with genomic selection strategies also allows exploitation of the already accelerating rate of genetic progress in Ireland, because elite young dairy bulls are considerably superior to the small numbers of bulls that entered progeny test 6 years ago. In addition, genomics is having a dramatic impact on the artificial-insemination industry by substantially reducing the cost of entry, the cost of operation, and shifting the focus of breeding from bulls to cows. We believe that the current industry structures must evolve substantially if Irish cattle farmers are to realise the full benefits of genomics and be protected from related risks. Our model for future dairy breeding envisages a small number of ‘next generation research herds’, 1000 ‘bull breeder herds’ and an artificial-insemination sector using 30 new genomically selected bulls per year to breed the bulk of replacements in commercial milk-producing herds. Accurate imputation from a low-density to a higher-density chip is a key element of our strategy to enable dairy farmers to afford access to genomics. This model is capable of delivering high rates of genetic gain, realising cost savings, and protecting against the risks of increased inbreeding and suboptimal breeding goals. Our strategy for exploiting genomic selection for beef breeding is currently focussed on genotyping, using a high-density chip, a training population of greater than 2000 progeny-tested bulls representing all the main beef breeds in Ireland. We recognise the need for a larger training population and are seeking collaboration with organisations in other countries and populations.

Abstract Maximising dairy industry profitability involves maximising product returns for a specific set of costs or minimising costs for a certain level of output. A strategy currently utilised by the New Zealand dairy industry to optimise the value of exports is to incorporate imported lactose along with local milk to maximise the production of whole milk powder (WMP) while complying with the Codex Alimentarius (Codex) standards, in addition to increasing the exported product for every litre of milk. This study investigated the impact of different product portfolio strategies on lactose requirements for the Irish and New Zealand dairy industries for current and predicted 2020 milk output projections. A mass balance processing sector model that accounts for all inputs, outputs and losses involved in dairy processing was used to simulate the processing of milk into WMP, skim milk powder (SMP), cheese, butter and fluid milk of different proportions. All scenarios investigated projected an increase in production and revenue from 2012 to 2020. Higher cheese production reduced industry lactose demand through whey processing, while scenarios reliant on an increase in the proportion of WMP were associated with increased lactose deficits.

SUMMARYImprovements in milk quality are important if the Irish dairy industry is to grow sustainably and retain a competitive advantage in a post-quota environment. In this regard, superior animal health has an important role to play. In order to reduce the costs of disease and to improve best practice it is important to demonstrate the economic gains achievable from improved dairy herd health. Elevated levels of somatic cell count (SCC) are an indicator of the prevalence of clinical and sub-clinical mastitis in dairy herds. Nationally representative farm-level data for Ireland (2008–2011) and panel data methods are used here to consider the independent effect of herd-level SCC (an annual weighted average figure based on monthly milk bulk tank readings) on both milk yield and gross margin per cow. Results indicate a 2% reduction in productivity for farms with SCC above 400 (‘000 cells/ml), while a reduction in bulk tank SCC from 400 to 300 (‘000 cells/ml) for the average herd (55 cows) results in an annual increase in gross margin of €1045. The impact of a range of herd management practices on SCC is also considered, with such practices shown to be important in influencing animal health.

SUMMARYEU milk quota deregulation has forced many farmers to reconsider the factors that will limit milk production into the future. Factors other than milk quota such as land, labour, capital, stock, etc. will become the limiting factor for many in a post-EU milk quota scenario. While it can be postulated what the limits to production will be in a post-quota scenario, how farmers react will determine the future direction of the industry. In order to determine the future attitudes and intentions and to identify the key factors influencing farmers who intend to expand, exit, remain static or contract their businesses in the future, a survey of a large group of Irish commercial dairy farmers was carried out. The telephone survey sample was chosen randomly, based on a proportional representation of suppliers to the largest milk processor in Ireland. The sample (780 suppliers) was broken down by quota size (five quota categories, Q1–Q5), supplier region and system of production. The sample was analysed to determine the effect of key survey variables on the future intentions of dairy farmers. The survey was completed by 659 suppliers (0·82 of the sample). The proportions of farmers intending to expand were 0·28, 0·47, 0·61, 0·61 and 0·56, respectively, for Q1–Q5, while the proportions intending to exit were 0·27, 0·18, 0·08, 0·09 and 0·08, respectively. Farmers who were intent on expanding had larger total farm areas, larger milk tank capacity per litre of milk quota, more modern milking facilities, more available cow housing and more housing that could be converted at a relatively low cost and were more likely to have a successor. Of those expanding, 0·60 wanted milk quotas abolished, while 0·36 of those planning to exit wanted milk quotas abolished. The level of expansion was affected by business scale, dairy stocking rate, the additional labour required with expansion and total and milking platform farm size.

The Irish wasp Microctonus aethiopoides was released in 2006 as a biocontrol agent for the clover root weevil Sitona lepidus a serious pest of white clover in New Zealand Following the successful and very rapid establishment of the Irish wasp there was high demand by farmers for the biocontrol Around 2000 minirelease samples were distributed directly to farmers through pastoral industry networks and field days These consisted of ten fieldcollected weevils exposed to the wasp in the laboratory at parasitism rates such that over 99 of samples contained parasitoids A random subsample of 100 recipient dairy farmers was surveyed subsequently by post with 59 responses The minireleases were well received most going to farmers that had previously experienced losses due to the weevil The mini releases were very effective in terms of getting the biocontrol to farms with 92 of insects arriving in good condition and 96 being released on the same day The farmers appeared receptive of the information provided with the samples indicating the project was successful in terms of technology transfer There was good recognition of DairyNZ with 79 showing awareness of the organisations funding enabling the biocontrol research

SUMMARYAgricultural specialists, particularly animal scientists, tend to use process-based life-cycle assessments (LCA), which describe the production system as a series of processes, to study the environmental impact of milk production based on their experimental data. Another approach called input–output (I–O) based LCA, which uses the economic transaction tables and national environmental accounts to determine the environmental impact triggered by final demand of milk production, is often less used due to data scarcity and higher uncertainty. In the current paper, process-based and I–O-based LCA models were developed to evaluate the greenhouse gas (GHG) and acidifying emissions from pasture-based milk production in Ireland. Process-based LCA found 1338·3 kg CO2 eq and 14·4 kg SO2 eq/t energy-corrected milk (ECM), and revealed details related to the farm management. The I–O based LCA found 1003·1 kg CO2 eq and 12·7 kg SO2 eq/tonne ECM and suggested that the agriculture, forestry and fishery (AFF) sector itself was largely responsible for the environmental impact of AFF products, rather than economic interaction with other sectors. The process-based LCA was found to be suitable for developing farm-scale sustainability strategies if variation of tactics across farms is provided, while the I–O based LCA offered potential sustainability guidance at the national scale. Further work is required to incorporate foreign production into the I–O table to account fully for imported goods and services. A detailed disaggregation within the AFF sector is also needed to gain a better understanding of the environmental sustainability of agricultural commodities. The present paper thus provides interesting results for the dairy industry, dairy researchers and LCA practitioners on further understanding of the environmental impact of milk production.

The Irish dairy industry aims to increase milk production from grass-based farms following the removal of the EU milk-quota system, but is also required to minimise greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to meet European reduction targets. Consequently, the sector is under increasing pressure to reduce GHG emissions per unit of milk, or carbon footprint (CF). Therefore, the goal of the present study was to determine the main sources of the CF of grass-based milk production and to identify mitigation strategies that can be applied to reduce farm footprints. In total, the CF of milk was estimated for 62 grass-based dairy farms in 2014. The method used to quantify GHG emissions was a life cycle assessment (LCA), independently certified to comply with the British standard for LCA (PAS 2050). The LCA method was applied to calculate annual on- and off-farm GHG emissions associated with dairy production until milk was sold from the farm in CO2-equivalent (CO2-eq). Annual GHG emissions computed using LCA were allocated to milk on the basis of the economic value of dairy products and expressed per kilogram of fat- and protein-corrected milk to estimate CF. Enteric methane was the main source of the CF of milk (46%), followed by emissions from inorganic N fertilisers (16%), manure (16%) and concentrate feedstuffs (8%). The mean CF of milk from the 62 farms was 1.26 kg of CO2-eq per kilogram of fat- and protein-corrected milk, but varied from 0.98 kg to 1.67 kg as measured using the 95% confidence interval. The CF of milk was correlated with numerous farm attributes, particularly N-fertiliser, the percentage of grazed grass in the diet, and production of milk solids. Grass-based dairy farmers can significantly improve these farm attributes by increasing herd genetic merit, extending the length of the grazing season and optimising N fertiliser use and, thereby, reduce the CF of milk.

SUMMARYA seasonal processing sector model was developed to simulate dairy product manufacture in Ireland. Outputs include the quantity of product manufactured, net returns and component values of milk (protein and fat) per month of year. Two milk supply profiles representative of mean calving dates of mid-February and mid-March were evaluated across three milk processing plants with differing capacities for cheese and casein. The analysis was carried out based on average Dutch National quotations over the period 2008–10. The mid-February mean calving date resulted in a lower peak supply with proportionately more milk produced in the months of January–March and October–December, which resulted in higher net returns across the three capacities analysed. Increasing the cheese and casein processing capacity resulted in higher net returns being generated.

The number of male calves from the Irish dairy herd has increased following the abolition of EU milk quotas in 2015. This is a new resource for the industry, and they can be reared economically to produce meat of acceptable eating quality with optimal fatty acid (FA) profile. The effects of breed and feeding treatment on the FA profile of the longissimus thoracis (LT) muscles of young dairy bulls (n = 69) of Holstein–Friesian and Jersey × Holstein–Friesian were evaluated. The relationship between FA composition and sensory characteristics was also investigated. Bulls were offered either 1 or 2 kg of concentrates at pasture during the first grazing season. Bulls finished on silage with 5 kg of concentrates or on ad libitum concentrates were slaughtered at 15 months of age, while bulls slaughtered at 19 months were fed either ad libitum pasture or pasture with 5 kg of concentrates during a second grazing season and finished on pasture with 5 kg of concentrates or ad libitum concentrates. Pasture-finished 19-month-old bulls had higher relative proportions of C18:0 (P < 0.001), C20:5n3 (eicosapentaenoic acid; P < 0.001), C18:2n6c (P < 0.05), C20:4n6 (P < 0.01), and total n-3 (P < 0.001) and n-6 polyunsaturated FAs (P < 0.05), but reduced C14:0, C16:0, C14:1, C16:1 and total monounsaturated FA (P < 0.001) proportions than in other production treatments. The silage-based finishing system of 15-month-old bulls increased the relative proportions of C15:0 (P < 0.01), C18:0 (P < 0.001) and total saturated FA (P < 0.01), but decreased the proportions of C20:3n6 (P < 0.05) and total unsaturated FA (P < 0.01) compared with the ad libitum-concentrate finishing system. However, the feeding system of the first or second grazing seasons had limited effects on the FA profile. Jersey × Holstein–Friesian breed type had higher relative proportions of C14:1 and C16:1 (P < 0.05), but lower C15:0 (P < 0.01), C17:0 (P < 0.001) and C17:1 (P < 0.01) proportions than did Holstein–Friesian beef. Slaughter age did not affect the FA profile. Monounsaturated FA, C14:0 and C16:0 proportions were positively (P < 0.05) correlated, but polyunsaturated FA proportion was negatively (P < 0.05) correlated with intramuscular fat content, sensory roast beef aroma, flavour, flavour length, juiciness, initial tenderness and ease of disintegration scores. Finishing system and slaughter weight were well discriminated on the basis of FA relative proportions by canonical discriminant analysis.

Abstract. There is strong and constant demand from various sectors (research, industry and government) for long-term, high-resolution (both temporal and spatial), gridded climate datasets. To address this demand, the Irish Centre for High-End Computing (ICHEC) has recently performed two high-resolution simulations of the Irish climate, utilising the Regional Climate Models (RCMs) COSMO-CLM5 and WRF v3.7.1. The datasets produced contain hourly outputs for an array of sub-surface, surface and atmospheric fields for the entire 36-year period 1981–2016. In this work, we list the climate variables that have been archived at ICHEC. We present preliminary uncertainty estimates (error, standard deviation, mean absolute error) based on Met Éireann station observations, for several of the more commonly used variables: 2 m temperature, 10 m wind speeds and mean sea level pressure at the hourly time scale; and precipitation at hourly and daily time scales. Additionally, analyses of 10 cm soil temperatures, CAPE 3 km, Showalter index and surface lifted index are presented.

With the development of tourism hotels industry have got great development, and it is popular to introduce computer services and computer management in daily work. Meanwhile, hotels industry introduces computer services and management has also got a good economic and social benefits. So, the Ministry of Construction made a decision: Any star hotel's design must include a computer management system when it's in the project approval, otherwise, it will be refused. It is clear, the computer management of clients is imperative in hotel.

The offshore wind industry has seen unprecedented growth over the last few years. In line with this growth, there has been a push towards more exposed sites, farther from shore, in deeper water with consequent increased investor risk. There is therefore a growing need for accurate, reliable, met-ocean data to identify suitable sites, and from which to base preliminary design and investment decisions. This study investigates the potential of hyper-temporal satellite remote sensing Advanced Scatterometer (ASCAT) data in generating information necessary for the optimal site selection of offshore renewable energy infrastructure, and hence providing a cost-effective alternative to traditional techniques, such as in situ data from public or private entities and modelled data. Five years of the ASCAT 12.5 km wind product were validated against in situ weather buoys and showed a strong correlation with a Pearson coefficient of 0.95, when the in situ measurements were extrapolated with the log law. Temporal variations depicted by the ASCAT wind data followed the same inter-seasonal and intra-annual variations as the in situ measurements. A small diurnal bias of 0.12 m s−1 was observed between the descending swath (10:00 to 12:00) and the ascending swath (20:30 to 22:30), indicating that Ireland’s offshore wind speeds are slightly stronger in the daytime, especially in the nearshore areas. Seasonal maps showed that the highest spatial variability in offshore wind speeds are exhibited in winter and summer. The mean wind speed extrapolated at 80 m above sea level showed that Ireland’s mean offshore wind speeds at hub height ranged between 9.6 m s−1 and 12.3 m s−1. To best represent the offshore wind resource and its spatial distribution, an operational frequency map and a maximum yield frequency map were produced based on the ASCAT wind product in an offshore zone between 20 km and 200 km from the coast. The operational frequency indicates the percentage of time during which the observed local wind speed is between cut-in (3 m/s) and cut-out (25 m/s) for a standard turbine. The operational frequency map shows that the frequency of the wind speed within the cut-in and cut-off range of wind turbines was between 92.4% and 97.2%, while the maximum yield frequency map showed that between 40.6% and 59.5% of the wind speed frequency was included in the wind turbine rated power range. The results showed that the hyper-temporal ASCAT 12.5 km wind speed product (five consecutive years, two observations daily per satellite, two satellites) is representative of wind speeds measured by in situ measurements in Irish waters, and that its ability to depict temporal and spatial variability can assist in the decision-making process for offshore wind farm site selection in Ireland.

Research with the aim of making an inventory of various types of plants, management, maintenance, monitoring, monitoring of road users and formulating a road park management strategy in Pekanbaru City was carried out in January 2020. The research location was in 21 Median Park Road in Pekanbaru City. Descriptive research approach with observation method. The research sample was determined by 3 daily freelance officers / median park road. and 5 road users per road in Jalan Median Park as well as interviews with the Pekanbaru City Parks and Cleanliness Service Staff. The collected data will be presented in a narrative and discussed descriptively. The road median park management strategy in Pekanbaru City was prepared using a SWOT analysis. The results showed that the inventory of plant species diversity in road median parks in Pekanbaru City were Aglonena, Bougenville, Ornamental Banana, Daffodil, Red Soka, Batavia, Oleander, Mawar, Tongue-in-Law, Ketapang Kencana, Palem, Angsana, Bintan, Pulai, Tanjung, Butterfly Tree, Azahra Plant, Japanese Bamboo, Tasbih Flower, Drasena, Yellow Pruning, Ornamental Pineapple, Landep, Tapak Dara, Paris Lilies, Spinach, White Taiwan, Brazilian Lilies, Blood Symbols, Iris, Lantana, White Lilies, Bombay Sutra, Adam Eve, Ruelia Purple Flower. Landscape management (planning, maintenance) of road median parks in Pekanbaru City still has not followed the established SOP. The perception of road users towards the road median park in Pekanbaru City is good, but there are still plants that must be maintained by the relevant Agency. The road median park management strategy in Pekanbaru City is to urge schools in Pekanbaru City to take part in the management of the median park road, involve business and industry players in managing road median parks, planting croton plants that function as aesthetics and absorb pollutants, improve facilities and infrastructure in the road median park, Providing socialization to the community about the importance of preserving the road median park, Providing counseling to casual daily officers regarding the function of the road median park.

Purpose This paper aims to examine the competitiveness trends and rankings of the Irish dairy sector at the farm and trade levels, relative to selected European Union (EU) Member States, in the context of the removal of the EU milk quota in 2015. Design/methodology/approach Competitiveness indicators including partial productivity measures and accountancy-based indicators were used for farm competitiveness, and net export market share and normalised revealed comparative advantage (NRCA) were used for export competitiveness. Findings Amongst the countries examined, Ireland had the highest growth in partial productivity indicators and was ranked first with the lowest total costs and cash costs per kg of milk solids post-quota. However, the total economic cost sub-components showed that Irish dairy farmers had high opportunity costs for owned land and labour. While Irish dairy products such as butter and powders have demonstrated growth potential in competitiveness post-quota with Irish butter and whey ranked in top three relative to other countries, other products, i.e. cheese and liquid milk have declined in competitiveness according to key export competitiveness indicators used. Practical implications The challenge for Irish dairy farmers is how to mitigate relatively high land and labour costs, which can limit farm competitiveness in the long run. The key players in the Irish dairy industry can now better position themselves in the global dairy market, recognizing the competitiveness dynamics of the different dairy products and their competitors. Policy implications and further areas of research have been identified to help improve the overall competitiveness position. It is surprising that Irish butter is a leader in the EU, yet not much research has been done to understand the market dynamics of this sector. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first of its kind to use both farm and export competitiveness measures to analyse the Irish dairy industry relative to other countries in the context of quota abolition. Unlike previous studies on dairy export competitiveness, this study has disaggregated the processed dairy products, which allowed for the ranking of countries and comparability across countries using NRCA.

The Irish dairy sector is recognised for its very significant contribution to the national economic status; it is now worth ∼€5 billion annually and represents the largest food and drink export category, which, in turn, represents one of the four largest manufacturing industries in the country. Given anticipated further growth in global demand for dairy products and the positive attributes and capabilities that Ireland has to meet that demand, in terms of pasture-based production and cost competitiveness, it is incumbent for the sector to attain the highest quality milk and dairy products. The combined collaborative approach between research and industry has ensured significant progress and enabled Ireland to remain at the forefront globally in terms of production of quality milk and dairy products. This paper highlights some specific scientific platforms and technologies currently shaping the industry in this regard and discusses current research activity as well as anticipating key requirements for future progress. While research, and farm and processing plant management have accomplished very significant advances in milk and dairy product quality, some overarching emerging challenges include product substitution and sustainability. Some key pillars for the future have been identified on which a strong, efficient dairy sector can be maintained and progressed. Specifically, the use of evidence-based information and real-time measures in prediction and decision-making will be a crucial pillar for the dairy sector of the future. This can promote an approach of proactive maintenance and optimisation of production through improved predictability and control of manufacturing processes.

The Veterinary Medicines Regulation (EU 2019/6) came into force in all EU member states on 28 January 2022. This regulation places particular emphasis on prudent and responsible antimicrobial use in food animal production. Key changes include restrictions on the prophylactic use of antimicrobials in animals, and the possibility to reserve certain antimicrobials for humans only. The Regulation presents challenges to the Irish dairy industry, particularly with respect to current approaches to dry cow therapy. In response, the CellCheck technical working group (TWG, a technical group working in support of CellCheck, the national mastitis control programme) have developed pragmatic national and farm-level recommendations in support of improved mastitis control and intramammary antimicrobial stewardship in the Irish dairy industry. This paper outlines these recommendations, and provides an overview of the evidence considered to inform the TWG during its work (including the Regulation, policy perspectives, international best-practice, international scientific reviews and specific Irish challenges). In many key areas of concern, the TWG recognises the challenges in seeking to shape recommendations in the absence of robust and practical scientific evidence. For this reason, some of the recommended actions are pragmatic in nature, informed by national and international experiences. Periodic programme review will be needed, informed by ongoing monitoring of key performance indicators, to identify those actions that are most effective in an Irish context.

AbstractIntramammary (IM) antimicrobial sales data are currently the only feasible means to gain broad insights into on-farm usage of antimicrobials (AMs) relevant to mastitis control within the Irish dairy industry. The aim of this study was to update earlier work describing sales data of intramammary antimicrobial usage in the Irish dairy industry in 2020. Previously reported data from 2013 to 2019 is included for reference and 2020 sales data is reported using similar methodology to previously published work in this area. Data on IM AMs sold in Ireland during 2013-2020 were obtained from two sources, believed to represent 99% of all sales of IM AMs in Ireland, and analyses were undertaken to evaluate patterns in IM AM sales. We report an increase in overall sales of both lactating cow (LC) and dry cow (DC) IM AMs. We observed a large increase in the use of DC IM AMs, from 0.95 to 1.13 defined course dose (DCDvet) per cow per year in 2019 and 2020 respectively, as well as evidence of ongoing usage of highest priority critically important AMs, as defined by the World Health Organization. There was also a slight increase in LC use of IM AMs, from 0.43 to 0.44 defined course dose (DCDvet) per cow per year. We believe that our results provide an accurate reflection of IM sales in Ireland in 2020. In common with any study of this type, caution is needed when interpreting national IM AM sales data, noting the potential discrepancies between AM sales and on-farm usage. Nonetheless, the sales pattern described here, most importantly the increased use of DC products and ongoing and increasing use of HP CIA products in both DC and LC therapy raise significant concerns for the Irish dairy industry. This study provides an evidence base to inform current policy discussions, particularly in the context of the new Veterinary Medicines Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2019/6), which comes into force on 28 January 2022.

Pig production in Ireland has gone through enormous changes during the past 60 yr, from pigs being primarily produced as a sideline on dairy farms, to an industry with one of the highest average herd sizes in Europe. This happened in part due to external pressure on the industry, whereby economies of scale were needed to compete with pigs produced in other countries, but largely due to the instigation of national programmes to support the pig industry through research, education and knowledge transfer. These efforts helped producers to take advantage of genetic improvements and monitor their own performance over time, as well as allowing for benchmarking of the national herd against other countries. The research programme initiated in the 1960s continues to grow and expand, providing the pig industry with internationally renowned data and knowledge in the areas of nutrition, animal welfare, the environment and energy use. Recent initiatives such as the establishment of the Teagasc and Irish Farmers Association Pig Joint Programme, and a Pig Health Check section in Animal Health Ireland, will help to promote further cross-collaboration between stakeholders in the pig industry, and enable it to rise to the challenges of the years ahead.

For ruminant production systems, the requirement to meet specific nutrient targets in the animal’s diet must be balanced with the aim of achieving high utilisation of forage in the overall feed budget. A focus of research and extension in an Irish industry context has been to meet these objectives using grazed pasture as the predominant forage source. This has prompted investigation to improve understanding of the components defining forage nutritive value, as well as the management factors affecting its intake and utilisation by animals. Similarly, quantifying the animal performance responses to varying type, rate and timing of dietary supplementation has been an important area of investigation. This review summarises some of the principal outcomes and developments over recent years across beef, sheep and dairy production systems. In addition, ruminant production systems are increasingly challenged to reduce potential environmental impacts by mitigating nutrient and gaseous emissions across their production cycles. Current and emerging research with regard to this issue, and enteric methane production in particular, is discussed.

Abstract Background In Ireland between 2008 and 2022, intramammary antimicrobial (AM) products could be prescribed by a veterinary practitioner under what was known as Schedule 8 (or remote) prescribing. Under this prescribing route, an annual herd visit was not required when criteria were met as outlined in Animal Remedies Regulation 2007 to 2017 (statutory instruments No. 786/2007 and 558/2017). Under this prescribing route, the responsibilities of the milk purchaser, the farmer and the veterinary practitioner were each outlined, and a written mastitis control programme (MCP) was required. Milk purchasers implemented MCPs on participating farms (so-called MCP herds) with support from veterinary practitioner(s) who undertook Schedule 8 prescribing of intramammary AM tubes. This study seeks a clearer understanding of the role of milk purchasers in the prescribing and sale of intramammary AM products in Ireland during 2019 and 2020, whilst this Regulation was in force. Specifically, the study sought insights into the role of milk purchasers in the prescribing and sale of intramammary AM products in the Irish dairy industry during 2019 and 2020, using anonymised and highly aggregated milk purchaser data. The study also provided insights into milk quality among supplying herds during this period. Methods For this study, we had access to anonymised, highly aggregated data from all milk purchasers that operated a MCP on at least some of their supplying herds during 2019 or 2020. Data collection was undertaken by the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine. Data analysis was primarily descriptive. Results Data were available on 11 milk purchasers (64.7% of all) and 13,251 supplying herds. Of these, 52% were MCP herds. The quality of milk from supplying herds varied significantly by month, year and milk purchaser. During 2019 and 2020, there was a single Schedule 8 prescriber (a private veterinary practitioner prescribing intramammary AMs as part of a MCP), on average, for 549.3 herds. The sale of intramammary AM products through milk purchasers represented 15.2% and 26.9% of national sales in in-lactation and dry cow tubes, respectively. There was an overall 2% increase in sales through milk purchasers between 2019 and 2020. Few European Medicines Agency (EMA) category B (‘Restrict’) intramammary AM products were sold by milk purchasers. For both in-lactation and dry cow tubes, there was a statistically significant association between EMA classification and route of sale (through milk purchasers or otherwise). Conclusions The study findings provide important insights into mastitis control and intramammary AM stewardship in the Irish dairy industry. Significant differences between milk purchasers were observed in the quality of milk, as measured through somatic cell count (SCC) values, from supplying herds. This warrants further research. In the context of intramammary AM prescribing, veterinary oversight under the Animal Remedies Regulation 2007 to 2017 was very limited during 2019 and 2020. There were also significant associations between EMA classification and route of sale during 2019 and 2020, reinforcing the need for Irish veterinary practitioners to move away from EMA category B intramammary AMs. Higher quality data are needed to address important industry questions. Specifically it is recommended that national bulk tank SCC data are made available for public good research. Past experiences with Schedule 8 prescribing (no longer permitted from 28 January 2022) may influence current efforts towards improved intramammary AM stewardship.

Abstract Background Selective dry cow therapy (SDCT) is widely promoted in dairy farming as a method to reduce antimicrobial usage. New legislation introduced by the European Union will restrict and regulate the prophylactic and metaphylactic use of antibiotics from January 2022. Blanket dry cow therapy continues to be a practice engaged in by many farmers in Ireland and for many of these farmers, moving towards SDCT would require a significant infrastructural, behavioural and/or cultural change on their farm. Existing research has reported the important need to understand farmers’ motivations to initiate any substantial behaviour change. However, it is currently unknown what farmers know, think and believe about SDCT in Ireland. The aim of this study was to use qualitative methods to explore what barriers and facilitators farmers perceived to exist with SDCT and explore if they had chosen to implement SDCT after voluntarily participating in a funded dry cow consult with a trained veterinarian, with the objective of maximising the dry period udder health performance and moving safely to SDCT. Results In this study, 19 farmers were contacted, and telephone interviews were conducted regarding farmers’ beliefs about the consequences of SDCT. Audio recordings were professionally transcribed verbatim and analysed qualitatively using an inductive thematic analysis. The analysis identified 6 barriers and 6 facilitators to implementing SDCT. A significant fear of increasing mastitis incidence was evident that caused reluctance towards SDCT and reliance on antibiotics. Mixed perceptions on SDCT, infrastructure limitations, a perceived lack of preventive advice as well as peer influence were presented as barriers to SDCT. Farmers can build confidence when a graded approach to SDCT is implemented, which could help overcome the fear of SDCT and reliance on antibiotics. Regulatory pressure, high standards of farm hygiene and use of targeted veterinary consults were found to facilitate SDCT. Education was suggested to motivate farmers in the future uptake of SDCT. Despite cited negative influences, peer influence can be utilised to encourage the farming community. Conclusions This study prioritises areas to facilitate the major behaviour change required as a dairy industry in order to move from blanket dry cow therapy to SDCT.

AbstractFood Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDG) are dietary recommendations described in terms of amounts of foods that should be consumed. They are designed to support healthy eating through simple messaging and indicate how to achieve a nutritionally adequate diet. However, assessing compliance with FBDG targets can be difficult. The quantity of food either being consumed or prescribed and the amount of that food that constitutes a serving are needed to calculate the contribution of the food towards a food group target. The aim of this study was to define the serving weight of foods, guided by definitions from Irish FBDG, to the McCance and Widdowson Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset 2015 (CoFID). This will enable the automatic assessment of compliance to FBDG using Nutritics nutrition analysis software. Foods from CoFID were categorised into six food groups as defined by Ireland's FBDG. Quantified servings from the Irish FBDG were matched to foods. Calculation criteria were developed to establish a serving size for remaining foods within each food group. For fats and oils, as well as raw fruits and vegetables, household measurements were converted to grams, using Food Portion Sizes from the Food Standards Agency. Quantities for cooked fruits and vegetables were calculated using weight-change factors published by Bognar. For the breads, cereals and potatoes group a serving size was calculated using the midpoint for the calorie bands in this group, as defined by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland. For the dairy group, a serving size was determined by calculating the quantity needed to provide 250 mg of calcium. This was in line with achieving the total daily recommended amount of calcium from the dairy group from 3 servings. For meat, fish and alternatives (MFA), serving sizes were developed using the recommended amount of protein per body weight reference value for males and females. For foods high in fat, sugar and salt, serving sizes were defined using 100kcal as the recommended amount of energy provided for snacks. Out of 3,291 foods, 1,980 were grouped into 6 food groups. Quantified servings were available for 694 foods in 3 food groups. Calculated serving sizes were developed for the remaining 1,276 foods. The quantity of each food that constitutes a serving will be integrated into Nutritics to automatically assess compliance to FBDG. This will enable Health Care and Food Industry Professionals to deliver informed advice on meeting population health targets.

Pain is a significant welfare concern within the dairy industry. Recognizing and managing pain are important factors for safeguarding animal welfare. A questionnaire was sent via post to Irish dairy farmers and large animal veterinarians to assess attitudes to pain and the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in pasture-based dairy cows. The questionnaire could also be completed online. A total of 1,002 surveys were received from dairy farmers and 116 from livestock veterinarians. Veterinarians and farmers generally perceived the same conditions and procedures as the most painful. However, farmers scored surgical procedures significantly higher than veterinarians, and veterinarians scored lameness-related conditions, mastitis (clots in milk only) and hock hair loss significantly higher than farmers. Higher pain scores for conditions and procedures given by dairy farmers and veterinarians were associated with increased NSAID use. However, the use of NSAIDs was low, relative to the pain score, for Burdizzo castration (farmers and veterinarians), white line separation (farmers and veterinarians) and abscess (veterinarians), mastitis with clots in milk only (farmers) and calving with no assistance (farmers). Veterinarians who graduated less recently had significantly lower odds of using NSAIDs, and farmers that completed the survey online, had a larger herd size, completed education up to level four or five (as opposed to level three) and those who seemed to have less knowledge on analgesics, had significantly lower odds of using NSAIDs. Empathy was not found to be associated with NSAID use and no correlation was found between pain and empathy scores. Veterinarians perceived cost as more of a barrier than farmers did; therefore, NSAIDs should be offered more readily. For those working with dairy cows, there is a need to continue education on the benefits of analgesia, especially for conditions and procedures that have low NSAID use relative to pain score. The habituation of humans to pain in animals needs to be prevented to enable pain to be recognized and managed appropriately. Pain scores can be used as a benchmark for veterinarians and farmers to determine how their perception of pain compares to others, and see how this may influence their NSAID use.

AbstractThis article focuses on the new Veterinary Medicines Regulation, which is applicable across all Member States of the European Union, including Ireland, from 28 January 2022. From this date, prophylactic use of antimicrobials (AMs) in groups of animals is banned, metaphylactic use in groups of animals is restricted, and certain AMs are reserved for humans only. In the Irish dairy industry, as elsewhere, successful implementation of the Regulation will require a high level of mastitis control across all herds, and measures to support high standards in antibiotic stewardship. National actions will be critical, to support optimal mastitis control throughout the national herd. For private veterinary practitioners (PVPs), the Regulation will lead to specific prescribing changes, including the requirement to shift from blanket to selective dry cow therapy. Further, prescribing choices will need to be guided by the categorisation for AMs developed by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). More broadly, the Regulation requires a fundamental shift in thinking both in terms of AM usage and of the role of the PVP. Given the close association between mastitis control and intramammary AM stewardship, it is imperative that prescribing and mastitis control decisions are made concurrently. A herd health approach will be critical, within a Client-Patient-Practice Relationship as outlined by the Veterinary Council of Ireland. On those farms with sub-optimal mastitis control, mastitis issues need to be sustainably resolved. A detailed farm investigation by the PVP, in partnership with the farmer and other milk quality professionals, is essential, to understand the epidemiology and on-farm drivers of mastitis, to develop farm-specific action plans, and to facilitate ongoing monitoring of progress. It is vital that PVPs provide leadership, with the provision of a holistic, herd health approach to inform both prescribing and mastitis control decisions in herds under their care.

I called your producer on the way here in the car because I was very excited. I found out … I did one of those genetic testing things and I found out that I'm 63 percent Irish … I had no idea. I had no idea! I thought I was Scottish and Welsh. It turns out my parents are just full of shit, I guess. But now I’m Irish and it just makes so much sense! I'm a really good drinker. I love St. Patrick's Day. Potatoes are delicious. I'm looking forward to meeting all my cousins … [to Conan O’Brien] You and I are probably related! … Now I get to say things like, “It’s in me genes! I love that Conan O’Brien; he’s such a nice fella.” You’re kinda like a giant leprechaun. (Reese Witherspoon, Tuesday 21 March 2017)IntroductionAs an Irishman and a football fan, I watched the unfolding 2016 UEFA European Championship in France (hereafter ‘Euro 2016’) with a mixture of trepidation and delight. Although the Republic of Ireland team was eventually knocked out of the competition in defeat to the host nation, the players performed extremely well – most notably in defeating Italy 1:0. It is not the on-field performance of the Irish team that interests me in this short article, however, but rather how Irish fans travelling to the competition were depicted in the surrounding international news coverage. In particular, I focus on the centrality of fan footage – shot on smart phones and uploaded to YouTube (in most cases by fans themselves) – in this news coverage. In doing so, I reflect on how sports fans contribute to wider understandings of nationness in the global imagination and how their behaviour is often interpreted (as in the case here) through long-established tropes about people and places. The Media ManifoldTo “depict” something is to represent it in words and pictures. As the contemporary world is largely shaped by and dependent on mass media – and different forms of media have merged (or “converged”) through digital media platforms – mediated forms of depiction have become increasingly important in our lives. On one hand, the constant connectivity made possible in the digital age has made the representation of people and places less controllable, insofar as the information and knowledge about our world circulating through media devices are partly created by ordinary people. On the other hand, traditional broadcast media arguably remain the dominant narrators of people and places worldwide, and their stories, Gerbner reminds us, are largely formula-driven and dramatically charged, and work to “retribalize” modern society. However, a more important point, I suggest, is that so-called new and old media can no longer be thought of as separate and discrete; rather, our attention should focus on the complex interrelations made possible by deep mediatisation (Couldry and Hepp).As an example, consider that the Youtube video of Reese Witherspoon’s recent appearance on the Conan O’Brien chat show – from which the passage at the start of this article is taken – had already been viewed 54,669 times when I first viewed it, a mere 16 hours after it was originally posted. At that point, the televised interview had already been reported on in a variety of international digital news outlets, including rte.ie, independent.ie., nydailynews.com, msn.com, huffingtonpost.com, cote-ivoire.com – and myriad entertainment news sites. In other words, this short interview was consumed synchronously and asynchronously, over a number of different media platforms; it was viewed and reviewed, and critiqued and commented upon, and in turn found itself the subject of news commentary, which fed the ongoing cycle. And yet, it is important to also note that a multiplicity of media interactions does not automatically give rise to oppositional discourse and ideological contestation, as is sometimes assumed. In fact, how ostensibly ‘different’ kinds of media can work to produce a broadly shared construction of a people and place is particularly relevant here. Just as Reese Witherspoon’s interview on the Conan O’Brien show perpetuates a highly stereotypical version of Irishness across a number of platforms, news coverage of Irish fans at Euro 2016 largely conformed to established tropes about Irish people, but this was also fed – to some extent – by Irish fans themselves.Irish Identity, Sport, and the Global ImaginationThere is insufficient space here to describe in any detail the evolving representation of Irish identity, about which a vast literature has developed (nationally and internationally) over the past several decades. As with other varieties of nationness, Irishness has been constructed across a variety of cultural forms, including advertising, art, film, novels, travel brochures, plays and documentaries. Importantly, Irishness has also to a great extent been constructed outside of Ireland (Arrowsmith; Negra).As is well known, the Irish were historically constructed by their colonial masters as a small uncivilised race – as primitive wayward children, prone to “sentimentality, ineffectuality, nervous excitability and unworldliness” (Fanning 33). When pondering the “Celtic nature,” the renowned English poet and cultural critic Mathew Arnold concluded that “sentimental” was the best single term to use (100). This perception pervaded internationally, with early depictions of Irish-Americans in US cinema centring on varieties of negative excess, such as lawlessness, drunkenness and violence (Rains). Against this prevailing image of negative excess, the intellectuals and artists associated with what became known as the Celtic Revival began a conscious effort to “rebrand” Ireland from the nineteenth century onwards, reversing the negatives of the colonial project and celebrating Irish tradition, language and culture (Fanning).At first, only distinctly Irish sports associated with the amateur Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) were co-opted in this very particular nation-building project. Since then, however, sport more generally has acted as a site for the negotiation of a variety of overlapping Irish identities. Cronin, for example, describes how the GAA successfully repackaged itself in the 1990s to reflect the confidence of Celtic Tiger Irishness while also remaining rooted in the counties and parishes across Ireland. Studies of Irish football and rugby have similarly examined how these sports have functioned as representatives of changed or evolving Irish identities (Arrowsmith; Free). And yet, throughout Ireland’s changing economic fortunes – from boom to bust, to the gradual renewal of late – a touristic image of Irishness has remained hegemonic in the global imagination. In popular culture, and especially American popular culture, Ireland is often depicted as a kind of pre-industrial theme park – a place where the effects of modernity are felt less, or are erased altogether (Negra). The Irish are known for their charm and sociability; in Clancy’s words, they are seen internationally as “simple, clever and friendly folk” (98). We can identify a number of representational tropes within this dominant image, but two in particular are apposite here: ‘smallness’ and ‘happy-go-luckiness’.Sporting NewsBefore we consider Euro 2016, it is worth briefly considering how the news industry approaches such events. “News”, Dahlgren reminds us, is not so much “information” as it is a specific kind of cultural discourse. News, in other words, is a particular kind of discursive composition that constructs and narrates stories in particular ways. Approaching sports coverage from this vantage point, Poulton and Roderick (xviii) suggest that “sport offers everything a good story should have: heroes and villains, triumph and disaster, achievement and despair, tension and drama.” Similarly, Jason Tuck observes that the media have long had a tendency to employ the “vocabulary of war” to “hype up sporting events,” a discursive tactic which, he argues, links “the two areas of life where the nation is a primary signifier” (190-191).In short, sport is abundant in news values, and media professionals strive to produce coverage that is attractive, interesting and exciting for audiences. Stead (340) suggests that there are three key characteristics governing the production of “media sports packages”: spectacularisation, dramatisation, and personalisation. These production characteristics ensure that sports coverage is exciting and interesting for viewers, but that it also in some respects conforms to their expectations. “This ‘emergent’ quality of sport in the media helps meet the perpetual audience need for something new and different alongside what is familiar and known” (Rowe 32). The disproportionate attention to Irish fans at Euro 2016 was perhaps new, but the overall depiction of the Irish was rather old, I would argue. The news discourse surrounding Euro 2016 worked to suggest, in the Irish case at least, that the nation was embodied not only in its on-field athletic representatives but more so, perhaps, in its travelling fans.Euro 2016In June 2016 the Euros kicked off in France, with the home team beating Romania 2-1. Despite widespread fears of potential terrorist attacks and disruption, the event passed successfully, with Portugal eventually lifting the Henri Delaunay Trophy. As the competition progressed, the behaviour of Irish fans quickly became a central news story, fuelled in large part by smart phone footage uploaded to the internet by Irish fans themselves. Amongst the many videos uploaded to the internet, several became the focus of news reports, especially those in which the goodwill and childlike playfulness of the Irish were on show. In one such video, Irish fans are seen singing lullabies to a baby on a Bordeaux train. In another video, Irish fans appear to help a French couple change a flat tire. In yet another video, Irish fans sing cheerfully as they clean up beer cans and bottles. (It is noteworthy that as of July 2017, some of these videos have been viewed several million times.)News providers quickly turned their attention to Irish fans, sometimes using these to draw stark contrasts with the behaviour of other fans, notably English and Russian fans. Buzzfeed, followed by ESPN, followed by Sky News, Le Monde, Fox News, the Washington Post and numerous other providers celebrated the exploits of Irish fans, with some such as Sky News and Aljazeera going so far as to produce video montages of the most “memorable moments” involving “the boys in green.” In an article titled ‘Irish fans win admirers at Euro 2016,’ Fox News reported that “social media is full of examples of Irish kindness” and that “that Irish wit has been a fixture at the tournament.” Aljazeera’s AJ+ news channel produced a video montage titled ‘Are Irish fans the champions of Euro 2016?’ which included spliced footage from some of the aforementioned videos. The Daily Mirror (UK edition) praised their “fun loving approach to watching football.” Similarly, a headline for NPR declared, “And as if they could not be adorable enough, in a quiet moment, Irish fans sang on a French train to help lull a baby to sleep.” It is important to note that viewer comments under many of these articles and videos were also generally effusive in their praise. For example, under the video ‘Irish Fans help French couple change flat tire,’ one viewer (Amsterdam 410) commented, ‘Irish people nicest people in world by far. they always happy just amazing people.’ Another (Juan Ardilla) commented, ‘Irish fans restored my faith in humanity.’As the final stages of the tournament approached, the Mayor of Paris announced that she was awarding the Medal of the City of Paris to Irish fans for their sporting goodwill. Back home in Ireland, the behaviour of Irish fans in France was also celebrated, with President Michael D. Higgins commenting that “Ireland could not wish for better ambassadors abroad.” In all of this news coverage, the humble kindness, helpfulness and friendliness of the Irish are depicted as native qualities and crystallise as a kind of ideal national character. Though laudatory, the tropes of smallness and happy-go-luckiness are again evident here, as is the recurrent depiction of Irishness as an ‘innocent identity’ (Negra). The “boys” in green are spirited in a non-threatening way, as children generally are. Notably, Stephan Reich, journalist with German sports magazine 11Freunde wrote: “the qualification of the Irish is a godsend. The Boys in Green can celebrate like no other nation, always peaceful, always sympathetic and emphatic, with an infectious, childlike joy.” Irishness as Antidote? The centrality of the Irish fan footage in the international news coverage of Euro 2016 is significant, I suggest, but interpreting its meaning is not a simple or straightforward task. Fans (like everyone) make choices about how to present themselves, and these choices are partly conscious and partly unconscious, partly spontaneous and partly conditioned. Pope (2008), for example, draws on Emile Durkheim to explain the behaviour of sports fans sociologically. “Sporting events,” Pope tells us, “exemplify the conditions of religious ritual: high rates of group interaction, focus on sacred symbols, and collective ritual behaviour symbolising group membership and strengthening shared beliefs, values, aspirations and emotions” (Pope 85). Pope reminds us, in other words, that what fans do and say, and wear and sing – in short, how they perform – is partly spontaneous and situated, and partly governed by a long-established fandom pedagogy that implies familiarity with a whole range of international football fan styles and embodied performances (Rowe). To this, we must add that fans of a national sports team generally uphold shared understandings of what constitutes desirable and appropriate patriotic behaviour. Finally, in the case reported here, we must also consider that the behaviour of Irish fans was also partly shaped by their awareness of participating in the developing media sport spectacle and, indeed, of their own position as ‘suppliers’ of news content. In effect, Irish fans at Euro 2016 occupied an interesting hybrid position between passive consumption and active production – ‘produser’ fans, as it were.On one hand, therefore, we can consider fan footage as evidence of spontaneous displays of affective unity, captured by fellow participants. The realism or ‘authenticity’ of these supposedly natural and unscripted performances is conveyed by the grainy images, and amateur, shaky camerawork, which ironically work to create an impression of unmediated reality (see Goldman and Papson). On the other hand, Mike Cronin considers them contrived, staged, and knowingly performative, and suggestive of “hyper-aware” Irish fans playing up to the camera.However, regardless of how we might explain or interpret these fan performances, it is the fact that they play a role in making Irishness public that most interests me here. For my purposes, the most important consideration is how the patriotic performances of Irish fans both fed and harmonized with the developing news coverage; the resulting depiction of the Irish was partly an outcome of journalistic conventions and partly a consequence of the self-essentialising performances of Irish fans. In a sense, these fan-centred videos were ready-made or ‘packaged’ for an international news audience: they are short, dramatic and entertaining, and their ideological content is in keeping with established tropes about Irishness. As a consequence, the media-sport discourse surrounding Euro 2016 – itself a mixture of international news values and home-grown essentialism – valorised a largely touristic understanding of Irishness, albeit one that many Irish people wilfully celebrate.Why such a construction of Irishness is internationally appealing is unclear, but it is certainly not new. John Fanning (26) cites a number of writers in highlighting that Ireland has long nurtured a romantic self-image that presents the country as a kind of balm for the complexities of the modern world. For example, he cites New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, who observed in 2001 that “people all over the world are looking to Ireland for its reservoir of spirituality hoping to siphon off what they can feed to their souls which have become hungry for something other than consumption and computers.” Similarly, Diane Negra writes that “virtually every form of popular culture has in one way or another, presented Irishness as a moral antidote to contemporary ills ranging from globalisation to post-modern alienation, from crises over the meaning and practice of family values to environmental destruction” (3). Earlier, I described the Arnoldian image of the Irish as a race governed by ‘negative excess’. Arguably, in a time of profound ideological division and resurgent cultural nationalism – a time of polarisation and populism, of Trumpism and Euroscepticism – this ‘excess’ has once again been positively recoded, and now it is the ‘sentimental excess’ of the Irish that is imagined as a salve for the cultural schisms of our time.ConclusionMuch has been made of new media powers to contest official discourses. Sports fans, too, are now considered much less ‘controllable’ on account of their ability to disrupt official messages online (as well as offline). The case of Irish fans at Euro 2016, however, offers a reminder that we must avoid routine assumptions that the “uses” made of “new” and “old” media are necessarily divergent (Rowe, Ruddock and Hutchins). My interest here was less in what any single news item or fan-produced video tells us, but rather in the aggregate construction of Irishness that emerges in the media-sport discourse surrounding this event. Relatedly, in writing about the London Olympics, Wardle observed that most of what appeared on social media concerning the Games did not depart significantly from the celebratory tone of mainstream news media organisations. “In fact the absence of any story that threatened the hegemonic vision of the Games as nation-builder, shows that while social media provided an additional and new form of newsgathering, it had to fit within the traditional news structures, routines and agenda” (Wardle 12).Obviously, it is important to acknowledge the contestability of all media texts, including the news items and fan footage mentioned here, and to recognise that such texts are open to multiple interpretations based on diverse reading positions. And yet, here I have suggested that there is something of a ‘preferred’ reading in the depiction of Irish fans at Euro 2016. The news coverage, and the footage on which it draws, are important because of what they collectively suggest about Irish national identity: here we witness a shift from identity performance to identity writ large, and one means of analysing their international (and intertextual significance), I have suggested, is to view them through the prism of established tropes about Irishness.Travelling sports fans – for better or worse – are ‘carriers’ of places and cultures, and they remind us that “there is also a cultural economy of sport, where information, images, ideas and rhetorics are exchanged, where symbolic value is added, where metaphorical (and sometimes literal, in the case of publicly listed sports clubs) stocks rise and fall” (Rowe 24). There is no question, to borrow Rowe’s term, that Ireland’s ‘stocks’ rose considerably on account of Euro 2016. In news terms, Irish fans provided entertainment value; they were the ‘human interest’ story of the tournament; they were the ‘feel-good’ factor of the event – and importantly, they were the suppliers of much of this content (albeit unofficially). Ultimately, I suggest that we think of the overall depiction of the Irish at Euro 2016 as a co-construction of international news media practices and the self-presentational practices of Irish fans themselves. The result was not simply a depiction of idealised fandom, but more importantly, an idealisation of a people and a place, in which the plucky little people on tour became the global standard bearers of Irish identity.ReferencesArnold, Mathew. Celtic Literature. 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New York Times 3 Aug. 2001 <http://www.nytimes.com/2001/08/03/opinion/foreign-affairs-the-lexus-and-the-shamrock.html>.Gerbner, George. “The Stories We Tell and the Stories We Sell.” Journal of International Communication 18.2 (2012). 25 Mar. 2017 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13216597.2012.709928>.Goldman, Robert, and Stephen Papson. Sign Wars: The Cluttered Landscape of Advertising. New York: Guilford Press, 1996.Negra, Diane. The Irish in Us. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2006.Pope, Whitney. “Emile Durkheim.” Key Sociological Thinkers. 2nd ed. Ed. Rob Stones. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008. 76-89.Poulton, Emma, and Martin Roderick. Sport in Films. London: Routledge, 2008.Rains, Stephanie. The Irish-American in Popular Culture 1945-2000. Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 2007.Rowe, David, Andy Ruddock, and Brett Hutchins. “Cultures of Complaint: Online Fan Message Boards and Networked Digital Media Sport Communities.” Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technology 16.3 (2010). 25 Mar. 2017 <http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1354856510367622>.Rowe, David. Sport, Culture and the Media: The Unruly Trinity. 2nd ed. Berkshire: Open University Press, 2004.Stead, David. “Sport and the Media.” Sport and Society: A Student Introduction. 2nd ed. Ed. Barrie Houlihan. London: Sage, 2008. 328-347.Wardle, Claire. “Social Media, Newsgathering and the Olympics.” Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies 2 (2012). 25 Mar. 2017 <https://publications.cardiffuniversitypress.org/index.php/JOMEC/article/view/304>.

AbstractStrong evidence exists linking poor diet to increased risk of overweight, obesity and non-communicable diseases. Reformulation initiatives, whereby the food industry gradually reduces energy, sodium, sugar, fat and saturated fat content of their products, are identified as important strategies to improve dietary intakes. The analysis aimed to examine the impact of voluntary reformulation, changes to products on the market and changes in consumer preferences on dietary intakes in Ireland from 2005 to 2017. Data on composition and volume sales (kg/ year) of products available on the market in 2005 and 2017 were collected from 15 Food Drink Ireland (FDI) member companies via online templates. These products were assigned to appropriate food and beverage groups identified in four Irish University Nutrition Alliance (IUNA) surveys of preschool children (1–4 years), children (5–12 years), teenagers (13–17 years) and adults (18–90 years). Assignment of FDI products to IUNA foods and beverages was carried out using weighted distributions for a given group of foods. The weightings were taken from the sales volumes of similar products relative to one another in a given category in a given year. Monte Carlo simulations were used to run the IUNA survey consumption data with both sets of weighted composition data from 2005 and 2017. The Creme Global intake model was used to estimate daily energy and nutrient intakes for all four populations during 2005 and 2017. The Wilcoxon-signed rank test was used to test for differences between the two years. Changes in both the products available on the market and market share of these products were observed from 2005 to 2017. The nutrient with the greatest intake reduction between the two years for all ages was sugar. Children and teens were the most affected, where total sugar intakes reduced by 3.2g/d and 2.7g/d, respectively. This reduction was primarily driven by the beverage category. There were modest saturated fat intake reductions observed for teens and adults (0.2g/d and 0.5g/d, respectively). Energy, total fat and sodium intakes for all ages remained relatively stable between the two years. This analysis highlights the impact of not only food industry efforts but also consumer choices on nutrient intakes in Ireland. It is worth noting that the data collected predates the sugar tax on sugar-sweetened beverages in Ireland. Reductions in sugar intakes were not compensated by total fat or energy increases.