Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue has today (Monday, May 22) announced the selection of the CEO designate for the Agri-Food Regulator.
The Agri-Food Regulator (An Rialálaí Agraibhia), an independent statutory office, will soon be established, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) said.
Niamh Lenehan has come through a competitive recruitment process and will commence her position on an interim basis as head of the Unfair Trading Practices (UTP) Enforcement Authority based in the DAFM.
She will formally become CEO designate of An Rialálaí Agraibhia on the enactment of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill, and will become CEO on its establishment day, the DAFM said.
Announcing the appointment of Lenehan as CEO designate, which follows a competitive Public Appointments Service (PAS) recruitment process, Minister McConalogue said:
“In Niamh, I believe we have found a tremendous professional who brings all the skills and experience to be a success as first CEO of the soon-to-be established Agri-Food Regulator office.
“This is a really important role and it will be a very influential part of our entire agri-food sector in the coming years. Niamh has strong agriculture and farming links as well as being a success in regulatory and policy roles in her career.
“Niamh’s appointment will enable her to begin the preparatory process of setting up the Office of An Rialálaí Agraibhia ahead of the enactment of the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill, which is currently progressing through the legislative process of the Houses of the Oireachtas.”
CEO designate
From Co. Meath, Lenehan’s most recent professional role has been with the Insolvency Service of Ireland where she has led initiatives in the areas of policy and regulation. She also previously held management roles with Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI).
Lenehan holds a doctoral degree in education from Maynooth University in addition to an Honours Bachelor’s Degree in Agricultural Science from University College Dublin (UCD), and a Master’s Degree from Kansas State University in the US.
She also holds a professional certificate in Corporate Governance from the Institute of Public Administration, according to the DAFM.
Agri-Food Regulator
An Rialálaí Agraibhia will have two main functions:
- A price and market analysis and reporting function; and
- A regulatory enforcement function concerning the enforcement of prohibited unfair trading practices.
The enabling provisions in the Agricultural and Food Supply Chain Bill will provide for the transfer of responsibility of UTP enforcement functions from the DAFM’s UTP Enforcement Authority to the remit of An Rialálaí Agraibhia.
This transfer is expected to occur at the time of commencement of the act, according to the DAFM.
The bill provides for mechanisms for the regulator to examine and make recommendations on any aspect of the agri-food supply chain.
These include the collection and analysis of price and market data to improve transparency and address information gaps in the supply chain, the DAFM said.