Structure

Jerry is from The Ragg, Co. Tipperary, he is a dairy farmer and milk supplier to Drombane Co-operative. He currently serving as ICOS President since June 2019. He has been chairman of the ICOS Dairy Committee since 2015.

Eamonn Looney is former Company Secretary of Dairygold Co Operative Society Ltd. Previous roles held include Group Commercial Accountant at Dairygold and Group Management Accountant at Express Foods Group Ireland. Eamonn is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and completed a Professional Diploma in Corporate Governance from UCD Michael Smurfit Business School in 2012.

James is the current Chairperson of South Tipperary Farm Relief Services Co-operative, board member of National Co-operative Farm Relief Services, Vice President of ICOS, Chairperson of the ICOS Rural Business Committee and an active member of his local community, sporting organisations and rural enterprise initiatives.
 James is a dairy farmer from Co. Tipperary. He supplies milk to Dairygold Co-operative and also keeps a herd of pedigree Hereford cattle. He is a veteran community and business activist in his local community and national organisations. As a full-time farmer, James recognises the benefits of achieving progress through co-operation and collaboration.”

Mary has been Manager at the Food Industry Training Unit (FITU), School of Food and Nutritional Sciences, UCC since 1993, managing continuing professional development and training activities in FITU. Mary was also Administrator at the Faculty of Food Science and Technology, UCC, 1993-2000 and has twenty-six years management experience in UCC.  She is a Board Member of the Irish Co-operative Organisation Society (ICOS) Plunkett Institute and a Member of the Steering Group of Taste 4 Success Skillnet. Prior to UCC, Mary worked in the National Board for Science and Technology, BioResearch Ireland and FOSS Denmark.

Sinead is Chief Financial Officer with ICOS.  For the past seven years, she has been responsible for the provision of accounting and administration services to the Trust.  Sinead was appointed Secretary to the Trust in April 2016.  Sinead worked in practice for 10 years gaining vast experience in auditing, accounts and taxation.  She is a Fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland and is an Associate of the Institute of Taxation.  Sinead has a Diploma in International Financial Reporting Standards and is an associate of IPASS.

Alo Duffy is Chairman of Lakeland Dairies. From Corbrack, Ballybay, Co. Monaghan, he was first elected to the Board of Lakeland Dairies in 2010 and was appointed Chairman in 2014. He holds a Diploma in Corporate Direction (Food Business) from University College Cork, completed under the ICOS Skillnet programme for strategic direction and corporate governance in Irish food companies. He is a Board member of ICOS. A full time dairy farmer, he is also a member of the Breffni/Oriel Holstein Friesian Breeders Club.  He started to represent farmers and highlight issues facing the farming community when he became Chairman of the Macra na Feirme in County Monaghan to educate and support young farmers like himself and as a result as awarded the President’s Award for Leadership, Macra Star Young Farmer and Monaghan Person of the Year.

TJ Flanagan is a UCD Agriculture Graduate who has worked for ICOS since 2000. He works in the area of Dairy Policy although within ICOS he has worked within all industry sectors, including Rural Development, Forestry and Livestock Marts, Veterinary medicines, Milk Quality and currently serves as Secretary to the ICOS Dairy Expert Committee. He is a Board member of the National Milk Agency, the Dairy Research Trust, as well as the Bord Bia SDAS Technical Advisory Committee, and the EU Civil Dialogue Group on Milk. He has extensive experience in Director and leadership training, delivering programmes for ICOS, Macra na Feirme and UCD. Prior to joining ICOS we worked in the Cereal business as a Commercial Manager and Agronomist for Ed Flahavan and Sons.

Tel: + 353 1 613 1316
Fax: +353 1 662 4502
Email: plunkettinstitute@icos.ie

Billy is the Head of Learning & Development and has overall responsibility for the training function, with a specific responsibility for the development of a training regime which ensures that the training needs of the industry are identified and met in line with the country’s National Skills Strategy. He has also been an integral player in the drive to raise the standards across the sector through his involvement in the development of industry specific training initiatives and participation on the Expert Group for Future Skills Needs.
Billy has chaired a number of groups and is a key figure in industry as a representative to various bodies including Educators, Social Partners, Industry Sectors, Regulators, Government Ministerial Offices, Trade Associations, Funding Agencies, and Standards Development at both National and International Levels.
With over 20 years’ experience in Industry he brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise which ensures the highest level of quality in the services provided.