merrion street

Agriculture Minister Coveney yesterday met participants in and graduates of the Bord Bia Marketing Fellowship Programme.  The programme, run by UCD, aims to increase Ireland’s food exports and broaden the industry’s export reach. Each year Fellows undertake in excess of 100 commercial assignments – on behalf of 80 Irish food and drink companies – across 12 overseas markets including the UK, Europe, Russia, Asia and the United States.

In his address to the Fellows Minister Coveney expressed particular appreciation of the contribution of Professor Mary Shelman of Harvard University – who facilitated a workshop with the Fellows and authored the

report.

This report concluded that ‘we can certainly imagine that in 20 years time Ireland will be the most efficient, most highly innovative food and drink country in the world’.  Recommendations from this Harvard study were subsequently reflected in

.

All food industry sectors, from prepared foods to meat, dairy, beverages, seafood and horticulture are covered by the Programme, run in association with the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School. The Fellowship is set to take in its third phase of participants in June.