Dairy: Food for Life Annual Report 2009 - The National Dairy Council

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8 ahead. The concept of the ‘Fresh Milk Club’ was developed following a period of in-depth consultation with school children, parents and teachers in early 2009 and comprehensive school information packs were sent to national schools in September and the website www.freshmilkclub.ie was launched. All important logistical support, in the form of a total of 90 fridges delivered to schools, as well as the provision of cooler bags to many others, has been central to improving the attractiveness of fresh milk to schools and their pupils. Over 400 visits of FAI liaison officers, offering coaching sessions and nutritional advice, helped to promote milk as central to an active, healthy lifestyle. In 2009, the NDC also undertook much of the preparatory groundwork needed to take the School Milk Programme to secondary schools in 2010. Supporting this, it worked closely with the Department of Education on the publication of a home economics supplementary guide to dairy for senior-cycle students and has explored the opportunity of developing osteoporosis information DVDs for both primary and secondary schools. The support of the School Milk Industry Working Group, along with the broader support of its cooperative partners, proved vital to the success of the School Milk Programme in 2009 and will continue to do so in 2010. Issues Management & Nutrition With a culture of misinformation often surrounding the consumption of dairy products, determined and pro-active Issues Management & Nutrition programmes are an essential foundation activity of the NDC. A front-line day-to-day priority, since 2008, has been to address misinformation in the media and broader public domain and anecdotal evidence suggests this has been a highly effective strategy. The establishment of the SNT has further allowed the NDC to draw effectively on the expertise of Irish academia and industry in the areas of food safety and nutrition. The recall of Irish pigmeat from supermarket shelves around the world in December 2008 confirmed the devastating if, fortunately, short-term impact a seemingly localised event can have on an entire sector. While the dairy industry was in no way connected with the recall, a concerted effort was needed to address broad ranging media and consumer concerns about safety in the aftermath. It underlined the absolute necessity of the full development of the NDC Issues Management Manual, which has been priority of the expert Issues Management Committee since it was established in 2008. The Issues Management Manual is a complex and extensive document which made considerable progress in 2009. This included the categorisation of potential issues under four headings: 1) farming and production methods; 2) processing; 3) marketing and consumers; and 4) nutrition and health. In total, 15 issues in the area of nutrition and health were National Dairy Council Annual Report 2009 identified for which relevant position statements should be prepared as a matter of urgency. Work continues on the manual in 2010, and a full review and update of work completed will be made available to members through the online portal later in the year. A further expression of the NDC’s commitment to nutrition and issues management can be seen in DN Forum, the dairy nutrition newsletter targeting health-care professionals, and in the creation of a comprehensive e-library. Both developments underline the NDC’s extending scope as a nutritional knowledge hub, further aided by its alliance with the GB Dairy Council and by developing links with, for example, the agricultural advisory body Teagasc. Close association with the IOS, meanwhile, remains both significant and mutually beneficial in this area. Collaboration on a number of projects has increased awareness of the value of dairy in building bone health among health-care professionals, policy makers and the general public. Accountability & Corporate Governance In keeping with its intention of being recognised as a worldclass advocacy and promotional agency, the NDC is confident that necessary progress has been made in the areas of corporate governance and accountability since the launch of Dairy: Food for Life in April 2008. With the publication of the Annual Review in January 2009 and 2010, as well at the Annual Report including the financial statements in June 2009 and, herewith, June 2010, the NDC seeks to give the clearest possible sense of the return on investment to stakeholders on all its initiatives. The NDC has also sought to develop its AGM into a broader conference-style event, communicating developments of interest and value to delegates. In 2010, the NDC will implement a comprehensive human resources policy in accordance with the advice and support of IBEC. Significant funding secured in late 2009 for the ‘Milk in Action’ Programme – involving co-op members, the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and the EU – is perhaps the clearest expression yet that the NDC is widely recognised as an organisation of purpose, capability and accountability. ‘Milk in Action’ ‘Milk in Action’ is a three-year milk-promotion campaign that commenced in April 2010 and runs until 2013. Operating as a separate programme from the NDC’s core programmes, but designed to complement the Marketing & Promotion and School Milk Programmes in particular, it aims to link increased milk consumption to sporting activity in Ireland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales and targets young people as its main audience. ‘Milk in Action’ also aims to inform women of
the nutritional benefits of milk and milk products, in particular cheese and yoghurt, in the battle against osteoporosis. Funding from EU has being matched by support from Irish industry and Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the first stages of promotional activity in the form of advertising will roll out in September 2010. Looking forward At the mid point of 2010, the sense of uncertainty that pervaded the dairy industry through much of 2009 has retreated to a considerable degree. While such uncertainty was a live issue, however, important decisions were required to be made. With this in mind, I believe we can speak of the NDC as an organisation that has shown itself to be singular and uncompromising in its objective of driving and stimulating the domestic consumption of locally produced milk and dairy products. This record of achievement can, as was stressed earlier, be attributed to a clear plan of action, set out in the six programme areas of the Dairy: Food for Life strategy. However, the channels through which we advance these activities would be, without a dedicated team to advance them, simply ideas on a page. In the development and execution of the ‘Farmed in the Republic of Ireland’ trade mark; the launch of the Quality Milk Awards; the nationwide roll out of the School Milk Programme; and the securing of funding for the ‘Milk in Action’ Programme, the role of the small but dedicated team at the NDC has been critical. No less important has been the unstinting support of Chairman Dominic Cronin and the Board of the NDC; our dedicated expert committees; our member cooperatives; the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food; Minister Brendan Smith TD; and, of course, the dairy farming community as a whole. Their collective support is, undoubtedly, the greatest single resource available to the NDC and I would like to express my sincere thanks to all as we fulfil the remit of developing a world-class organisation dedicated to delivering long-term benefits to our dairy industry. Together, we have overcome many obstacles and progressed activities on numerous fronts over 2009. I have no doubt we will continue this momentum in 2010 and, working together, will serve the Irish dairy industry with distinction and determination. Helen Brophy Chief Executive National Dairy Council Annual Report 2009 9
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Page 4 and 5: 4 Chairman’s Statement INTRoDuCIN
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Page 10 and 11: 10 REPORTS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Page 12 and 13: 12 The National Dairy Council State
Page 14 and 15: 14 National Dairy Council Annual Re
Page 16 and 17: 16 FIXED ASSETS National Dairy Coun
Page 18 and 19: 18 1. ACCOUNTING POLICIES National
Page 20 and 21: 20 6. DEBTORS: (Amounts falling due
Page 22 and 23: 22 Eamonn Bray (National Milk Agenc
Page 24 and 25: 24 Dr. Pat Dillon (Head of Centre,
Page 26: 26 PA/Admin Issues Management & Nut

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