Tirlán has today (Wednesday, January 22) officially launched its first awards programme to recognise the work of co-op members to deliver high quality milk sustainably.

The Tirlán Dairy and Sustainability Awards 2025 will celebrate the achievements of dairy farmers who demonstrate excellent practices in milk quality, animal welfare, farm management and adopting sustainability practices.

Nominations for the inaugural awards are now open online on the Tirlán Farmlife website, with the closing date of February 14.

Tirlán said that suppliers will also be selected to go forward for entry based on criteria including both milk quality test results, technical reports and sustainability data.

All applications shortlisted will be assessed by a judging panel.

The full list of categories for the Tirlán Dairy and Sustainability Awards 2025 are as follows:

Overall

Tirlán Milk Supplier of the Year.

Sustainability

Tirlán Sustainability Champion;
Tirlán Farming for Water Champion.

Milk Quality

Avonmore Fresh Milk Supplier;
Milk Solids Champion;
Milk Quality Award - over 600,000L;
Milk Quality Award - under 600,000L.

Regional Awards

North Region Award;
South Region Award;
East Region Award;
West Region Award.

Special Categories

Young Farmer Award (Under 35);
New Entrant Award;
Farming Ambassador;
Cathal Moran Innovation Award.

There are two further special recognition awards that recognise the exceptional contributions of Tirlán milk drivers and farm employees.

The overall award, general awards and special recognition category winners will be announced at a ceremony on April 29, 2025.

John Murphy, Tirlán chairperson, said it is important to recognise and drive awareness among consumers and the general public of the great work carried out by Tirlán farmers.

"They have been exceptional adopters of new technologies and continue to further enhance sustainability on their farms through a focus on reducing on-farm emissions and allowing space for nature.

“We look forward to celebrating with our suppliers, recognising our Tirlán Milk Supplier of the Year and fellow family farms for their exceptional dedication and credentials in areas such as sustainability, milk quality, milk solids and more," he said.

Murphy added that the Cathal Moran Innovation Award will also be offered in recognition of innovative practices on farm within the Tirlán catchment area.

“The late Cathal Moran was always recognised as an enthusiastic adopter of new technologies as part of the Tirlán Teagasc Future Farm programme and always strove to be innovative and lead by example.

"We would like to offer this award to recognise those who strive to innovate with a vision of improving their farm sustainably for the future," he said.

Separately, Tirlán has invited its shareholders and suppliers to its 2025 outlook webinar this evening at 7:30p.m.

Senior Tirlán management and board members will provide updates on the business and plans for the coming year.