26-5-2015: REPRO FREE PHOTO: Roisin Canning, (9) whose parents Bernie and Graham of Blast and Wilde, Slane County Meath were Supreme Champions for their butter in 2014 pictured at the launch of the Blas na h-Eireann / Irish Food Awards which will take place in Dingle in October.
The Irish Food Awards will see more than 2,000 Irish products blind tasted and scored by over 350 judges who will select the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners in over 90 produce categories. Online entries close on 17th June 2015 and can be completed on www.irishfoodawards.com.
Photo by Don MacMonagle

Press release:
Over 90% of Irish Food Producers Experiencing Growth
- but cash flow and financial support among major

A new survey of more than 2,000 Irish food producers across the island of Ireland shows that while they are experiencing substantial growth, issues such as 'cash flow', 'distribution' and 'access to financial advice' are major challenges, particularly for producers ready to develop into national and international markets. These survey results were announced at the launch of the 8th annual Blas na hEireann, The Irish Food Awards by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney on Tuesday 26th May 2015. This year's Irish Food Awards will see more than 2,000 Irish products blind tasted and scored by over 350 judges who will select the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners in over 90 produce categories. The Awards carry with them a huge amount of prestige and winning produce is used as a quality benchmark for Irish products amongst national and international retailers, buyers and distributors alike. Online entries close on 17th June 2015 and can be completed on www.irishfoodawards.com. The 'Producer Power Survey' showed that over 90% of producers across the island have seen their operations grow in the past year and a massive 95% feel confident that their businesses will continue to flourish throughout 2015. Furthermore the vast majority of producers have said that