- “Feeding the Planet” has a special resonance for Ireland
- Minister visits “Autogrill” sustainability project and discusses plans for Irish beef collaboration
Visiting the Ireland Pavilion for the World Expo in Milan, Simon Coveney T.D., Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine welcomed Ireland’s participation in the event, which will run from 01 May – 31 October 2015.
Minister Coveney said “I welcome Ireland’s participation at Expo Milan 2015. The Expo theme “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life” has a special resonance for Ireland. The Ireland Pavilion will allow us to showcase Ireland as a vibrant, creative and attractive country.
Ireland’s theme of participation is Origin Green – which encapsulates our quest to become a world-leading producer of verified sustainably-produced food and drink. We are committed to increasing food production in a way that respects the environment – the Ireland Pavilion will show the world how we are promoting sustainability with the support of the food and drink companies that have signed up to the Bord Bia Origin Green programme”
The Minister noted that the Ireland Pavilion was designed by the Office of Public Works and congratulated the OPW for making sustainability a guiding principle from the inception of the design process. “The use of wood with its low carbon footprint, is in harmony with the sustainability ideals of the Expo and provides a good framework for the visitor experience, which will focus on Ireland’s long-established farming tradition and producers as the custodians of land and sea, interlinked with Ireland’s tradition of creating high-quality food and drink. It will also feature Ireland’s magnificent scenery including the Wild Atlantic Way and our rich musical and literary culture.
Autogrill
Following his tour of the Irish Pavilion Minister Coveney visited Autogrill to see at first hand the importance global companies are now placing on innovation and sustainability. Autogrill is the market leader in the Italian consumer foodservice sector.
Autogrill Italy has launched its sustainability programme via their new “AfutureR” store on the A8 motorway on the outskirts of Milan. The store has futuristic volcano-shaped architecture and uses renewable energy thanks to its rainwater harvesting system. This store was designed and built with Milan Expo 2015 in mind.
The building is constructed from recyclable building materials and the entire skeleton of the approximately 2,500 m2 building is constructed of PEFC-certified glued laminate timber from sustainable forests. The service area embodies a number of innovative, expert solutions that optimize energy consumption and resources used while at the same time safeguarding nature and the environment. These are based on the international best practices for environmental protection.
The company is seeking to define new steps to improve the Group’s performance and to favour, both inside and outside the organization, an innovation-driven process targeted towards products and services that combine creativity and sustainability.
Irish Beef Project – Premium Certified Angus Burgers
Bord Bia in collaboration with Kepak, will develop an Irish beef project that will be rolled out across 5 European markets with Autogrill. Bord Bia will support Autogrill with a communications campaign including key messaging on grass-fed production and sustainability produced beef. In the course of the project, certified Angus premium burgers will be supplied across 5 markets including: Benelux, France, Spain and Italy.
