In association with the National Dairy Council, Kerrygold and Ornua, we will introduce the 12 fantastic farming-family finalists that have been successful this year.

From Tuesday to Friday (September 7-10 inclusive), we will focus on three families per day, who will share some information about their lives, their dairy enterprises, and some impressive farm facts that clearly illustrate why they are the cream of the 2021 crop.

Each year, the NDC and Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards showcase and celebrate the dedication of Irish family farms to producing the best quality milk in the world.

Sustainability is at the heart of this year's event, which is themed, Irish Dairying: Delivering Sustainably, offering an ideal platform to acknowledge farms that are industry leaders in sustainable food production.

This year's 12 family-farming industry leaders, representing eight counties, have been nominated by 12 dairy co-ops nationwide, in recognition of their commitment to the highest standards of hygiene, food safety, animal health, and environmental protection.

The 2021 NDC & Kerrygold Quality Milk Award finalists are:

Commenting on the 2021 awards, Zoe Kavanagh, CEO of the NDC said: "The landscape that we’re living in is changing.

"Consumers are demanding natural, sustainably-produced food, and transparency and authenticity are now, more important than ever.

"Irish dairy has one of the lowest carbon footprints internationally, primarily due to the unique grass fed, family based Irish farming system which is extremely efficient and involves less intensive farming.

"It is in all our interests to continue to nurture that approach and support future generations to farm with excellence.”

Adhering to all governmental guidelines, this year’s awards will take place outdoors at Moorepark Dairy Open Day on Wednesday, September 15.

Tune into Agriland throughout the week for in-depth details of the finalist farms.