Cooleeney Farm
Membership Status:
Membership Pending
Sector:
Dairy
About the company
Jim and Breda Maher introduced cheese-making to their Tipperary dairy farm in the mid-80s. Milk quotas had restricted the growth of the dairy herd, therefore research into an additional product line began. Dairy was the main enterprise at Cooleeney farm for three generations.
Given the quality milk available, cheese-making looked like the best viable option. Breda enrolled in UCC to study cheese-making and the first Cooleeney Cheese was introduced to the market in September 1986.
Thirty years on, the company now supplies award-winning cheese to the Irish market and exports to Europe, North America and the Gulf Region. The team at Cooleeney continues to expand its cheese range, its markets, and its future developments.
Key Sustainability Commitments
Animal Welfare
Cows are kept in a clean healthy environment, one cow per acre policy and housed comfortably on the family farm.
Commitment to Local Sourcing
85% of milk used is from the family farm and the rest is from local farms participating in Bord Bia Sustainable Dairy Assurance Scheme. Target set for 100% of milk to be supplied from the family farm by end of 2019.
Reducing Food Waste
Target established to use 100% of Whey waste by product by diverting to animal feed and investigating Anaerobic Digestion capabilities.
