Some 14 dairy farms  have been shortlisted as national finalists for the 2013 National Dairy Council (NDC) and Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards.

The competition, which sets out to highlight and reward Irish dairy farming excellence, has been described as ‘The Sam Maguire of Farming’. The shortlisted farms received inspection visits from all three members of the expert judging panel: Professor Paddy Wall, Associate Professor of Public Health at University College Dublin; Dr Jack Kennedy, dairy editor, Irish Farmers Journal; and Dr David Gleeson, Milk Quality Research, Teagasc.

The judges scrutinised technical information and farm management practices supporting each farm’s consistently excellent quality milk standards.  They also reviewed aspects of contemporary dairy farming ranging from sustainability and animal welfare to care of the environment.

The results will be announced today, with the overall winning farmer set to receive a prize of €5,000 and the NDC and Kerrygold Quality Milk Awards perpetual trophy.

Here we have some background information about this year’s top farms, click on the name below to read more: