About - Talamh Beo

Welcome to Talamh Beo

Food policies by the people, for the people!

We believe that farmers and communities should be at the centre of decision-making for food and agriculture systems and developing agricultural policies.

We stand for a system which puts the power back into the hands of farmers, communities and citizens instead of corporate interests and industrial agriculture and food production.

Talamh Beo are Ireland’s only members of the European Coordination Via Campesina – itself part of La Via Campesina, the international movement of farmers with more than 180 member organisations in 82 countries.

By joining Talamh Beo, you are joining an international movement working for agroecology, regenerative farming and food sovereignty.

Become a Member

Our food system should

Talamh Beo

What We Stand For

Which would you prefer?

Local food producers need your help and support! We all know that locally produced, nutrient dense food is best for us and our families, so make your views heard & tell our government that we want to move away from industrialised agriculture and back to supporting our local food producers!

A vision of a better future
through locally produced food

We want to create a better food system in Ireland, where all people have access to healthy, nutritious and affordable local food.

WE STAND FOR:

Food, fuel and fibre sovereignty – Read more about the Six Pillars of Food Sovereignty here
Land use which improves social, economic and environmental conditions
Resilient rural and farming communities
Direct access to culturally appropriate, nutrient dense, quality and local food
Every citizen having access to healthy, regionally produced, affordable food from farmers they can trust

Become a Member

Talamh Beo Core Group Members

We aim to ensure a living landscape where people and ecosystems can thrive together

Talamh Beo

Our Team

Board of Directors

Ruth Hegarty is a food policy and sustainable food systems specialist. She leads and consults on a wide variety of projects that promote better food environments, food education, local food networks, and a resilient and sustainable food system, as well as being involved in food policy research and advocacy. She is also an experienced facilitator, MC, and writer. Ruth holds a Masters in Food Policy from City, University of London and a Masters in European Economic & Public Affairs from UCD, and lectures in Food Policy at UCC.

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/ruthhegarty Twitter: @eggandchick Instagram: @eggandchick

Mimi Crawford is an environmental geologist, organic farmer, mother and artisan food producer.

Mimi combines her geological and environmental work on soils and landscapes in Ireland with her experience of farming to explore context specific challenges and opportunities arising for small farms and artisan food producers in a changing world.

Together, she and her husband Owen run a small, diversified farm with a raw milk micro-dairy, poultry and pigs and she is currently a member of the FSAI Artisan Forum.

www.crawfordsfarm.ie

Emanuela Russo is a farmer, communicator and mother based in County Galway. She and her partner Fergal run a small scale agroecological farm (Leaf and Root Farm) near Loughrea, where they have been growing organic vegetables and fruits since 2011.

Manu is the coordinator of the International Nyéléni newsletter, a communications tool of the International Food Sovereignty movement. nyeleni.org. She holds a Masters in International Cooperation from CIRPS (Interuniversity Research Centre for Sustainable Development), Rome.

www.leafandroot.org

John Brennan see Core Group bio.

Thomas O Connor see Core Group bio.

Davie Philips co-founded FEASTA, the Foundation for the Economics of Sustainability, and Sustainable Projects Ireland Ltd., the educational charity developing Cloughjordan Ecovillage, where he is based. He works with Cultivate, the Sustainable Ireland Cooperative, leading initiatives to build the capacity of local catalysts to facilitate engagement.

Davie is actively involved with Cloughjordan Community Farm and is a coordinator of the Food Hub within the Ecovillage. He also plays a role in leading the Feeding Ourselves Community of Practice and manages an Irish Living Lab of stakeholders focused on short food supply chains.

Joe Murray has worked with Afri since 1982, recently stepping down as Coordinator..

He has been a key organiser of the annual Doolough Famine Walk since its inception in 1988, and of Féile Bríde which began in 1993.

He also initiated the Afri Hedge School/Scoil Chois Claí, which has taken place in various locations around Ireland, as well as Féile na Beatha in Carlow and Food for Thought in Castlebar. Afri has been a key partner with the annual Food Sovereignty event in Maynooth University for many years.

Rose Hogan is the Global Sustainable Agriculture and Natural Resources Management Adviser with an International Development Agency.

She has over 30 experience in formulating, implementing and monitoring participatory rural development, sustainable agriculture and land use programmes with partners in coastal, forest, freshwater wetlands and agro-ecosystems.

She has designed and underpins all rural livelihoods and food systems work with agroecological principles and the FAO Ten Elements of Agroecology.

Fergal Smith is a farm manager and former pro-surfer. He has a background in horticulture from growing up on his parents market garden outside Westport in Co. Mayo where his dad was a pioneer in small scale horticulture.

Up until he was 24 he travelled the world and surfed the best waves around, at which point he gave it all up and returned to Ireland to work the land.

Fergal has completed the 10-day 3LM Holistic Management training and Richard Perkins 10 day intensive regenerative agriculture training.

Talamh Beo

Our Team

Core Group

Janet Power runs an organic market on a 1/2 acre plot www.gorsefarm.ie with her partner Jenny Watkins. She has previously served as a board member of IOA & now sits on the certification panel. Janet became an active member of Talamh Beo because she believes that agroecology and food sovereignty provide the framework for the solutions we need to make a sustainable food system, short food supply chains and viable livelihoods for small-medium scale food producers.

John Brennan has managed Leitrim Organic Farmers Coop since 2001 and has also farmed Irish Moiled Cattle and sheep organically in Roscommon since 1998.

He is Chairman of National Organic Training Skillnet (NOTS) and Irish Native Rare Breeds Society (INRBS), and also works as an organic advisor and general farm advisor.

John’s hope is that Talamh Beo will define a new path for agriculture in Ireland – one that will be led by agroecology, and that will ensure that those who wish to farm can do so through the tenets of Food Sovereignty.

Thomas O Connor owns and runs www.mannaorganicstore.ie and farm with his wife Claire in Kerry. They have a 25 acre mixed organic farm where we grow produce for our organic store in Tralee. Thomas believes that we need to work with nature rather than against it, knowing that food and seed sovereignty can help us build resilient and sustainable communities. He is also involved with www.transitionkerry.org and www.biodynamicagriculture.ie

Linkedin: organicfarmerthomas

Ailbhe Gerrard is a farmer and beekeeper on Brookfield Farm in Tipperary, with organically certified sheep, trees, crops. She is director of Field Exchange Ltd and runs a farm based hive gifts business. Ailbhe is experienced in building teams and structures that enable creativity. Agricultural research and practice is an ongoing interest for Ailbhe. She has a Master of Science degree in Organic Farming from Scotland’s Rural College, Environment and Sustainable Development from University College London, and was awarded Nuffield Agricultural Scholar 2016. Her research focused on adding value to farm produce and reaching customers directly.

Brian Meredith and his dad run a mixed organic suckler and tillage farm with a focus on producing low-input quality beef and grains while maintaining a healthy, biodiverse ecosystem on the land. He feels that Talamh Beo represents his outlook and interests better than other farming organisations, while focusing on solutions rather than resisting change. He is interested in promoting agroecology, community, collaboration, smaller-scale farming and local food networks within Irish farming.

Fergal Anderson worked in Brussels for La Via Campesina before returning to Ireland to establish Leaf and Root Farm on a greenfield site 12 years ago with his partner Emanuela Russo. They supply vegetables and fruits to local restaurants and manage a mixed species woodland. Fergal thinks Talamh Beo can be a positive force in Irish farming and help transform our food and agricultural systems for the better.

About Us