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Good Food Ireland Sustainability Award – We Won!

We are absolutely thrilled to share that we have won the Sustainability Award at the highly coveted Good Food Ireland Awards!

The Good Food Ireland Awards made a triumphant return this year, marking the first time since pre-Covid that the event has been held. It was a significant moment for the Irish food industry, as the awards ceremony brought together chefs, producers, and hospitality providers from across the country to celebrate their achievements and recognise their commitment to sustainability, quality, and authenticity.

Held at the beautiful K Club in Kildare, the awards were attended by Minister Simon Coveney and some 300 guests, including Irish and international chefs, buyers, and industry leaders. The Good Food Ireland Awards provide standout and recognition to those people who genuinely capture the essence of Ireland’s food and drink, setting it in a cultural context to inspire travellers, international consumers and locals to seek out real authenticity and Irish provenance in restaurants, pubs, hotels and retail.

The Sustainability Award from Good Food Ireland recognises businesses that go above and beyond in their commitment to environmental and social sustainability, businesses that have developed and implemented clean production initiatives and sustainable practices, demonstrating how they are helping to protect Ireland’s environment and greater wellbeing for the long-term benefit of all.

Strawberry tree restaurant award

Sustainability has always been at the heart of our philosophy here at BrookLodge & Macreddin Village. Since the first day we opened our doors in 1999, we have been proud to champion the value of organic food and work in harmony with nature.

Our journey to sustainability began with baby steps and taking the basics on board. These steps have now developed into a green programme that is part of everyday life at BrookLodge & Macreddin Village. From harnessing renewable and local geothermal energy to reusing, recycling and working with suppliers who share our outlook, we do our utmost to minimise our impact on the natural environment. And in doing so, Macreddin Village is now proudly carbon-neutral.

Some of our Macreddin Green Highlights include:

  • Geo Thermal Energy – The Macreddin Village Green Programme offers Ireland’s only Geo-Thermal energy system. Twenty-six kilometres of underground pipe-work provide under-floor heating and also air conditioning
  • Wood Chip Burners – Macreddin Village is the only Hotel in Ireland with two, 200KW carbon-neutral Wood-Chip Burners providing all the hot water in your sink, your bath and your shower
  • The Village Well – The Macreddin Village Green Programme offers carbonated and still pure-water from its very own Village well. The bottled water provided in our bedrooms, meeting rooms and restaurants is purified drinking water which comes from our own spring well.
  • Food Foraging & Preservation – The Macreddin Village Green Programme follows fully through when it comes to food by offering Ireland’s first Certified Organic Restaurant – The Strawberry Tree.

Specialising in Organic and Wild Foods, The Strawberry Tree’s full time Wild Foods Forager utilises the bounty of Wild Foods available on our hedgerows and preserves them for future use using traditional methods.

These precious resources are stored in our Wild Foods Pantry to be served each night at the Restaurant for our guests to enjoy. The Strawberry Tree has won many accolades recognising these efforts with the most recent being – Irish Restaurant Awards ‘Best Sustainable Practices’ Award.

These initiatives are just some of the ways our organic ethos infuses everything we do. As time passes, even more ways to lessen our environmental impact are sure to emerge and we’ll also enthusiastically embrace these.

Brooklodge & Macreddin Village Staff

This award is a testament to the hard work and dedication of all our Crew & Management here at BrookLodge & Macreddin Village, who are continuously committed to promoting sustainability, reducing waste, and working towards a Greener Future for upcoming generations.

We would like to extend a huge congratulations to all the other finalists and winners. In addition, we would also like to extend a huge thank you to the Good Food Ireland team and judges for this prestigious recognition.

Brooklodge & Macreddin Village in the Irish independent

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