Best Practices

The Keogh’s understand potatoes - the right time to sow, to the perfect weather and when to harvest. The science behind it and have been doing it for centuries. For 200 years they have been driven to produce at the highest standards while having the environment front of mind. They embarked on a journey to teach these methods and reduce their carbon footprint. This journey then saw them share their knowledge. Develop skills, make connections and start new friendships. With Vita the ‘Irish Based International Development Agency’ brought them to the highlands of Southern Ethiopia where they have established potato cultivation in the region.

ESG & Green Education. They wanted to share their knowledge of agri science with an underserved community and while doing so they saw an opportunity to partner with them to off set their Carbon emissions.

We partnered with Vita and other industry experts to write a three-year development plan that underpins our commitment to the region. Originally, our work with Vita was to be purely about knowledge transfer, helping to empower communities to produce better potato crops and become self-sustainable. However, Vita's carbon reduction programme has enabled our family business to offset our carbon emissions while bettering the lives of many Ethiopian families at the same time.

Sustainability is absolutely key to the growth of our business. Keogh's Farm was carbon neutral accredited in May 2018, this year, meaning carbon emissions are tracked from the field right through to the crisping house, with the support of the Vita/CO2 balance auditing programme.

Sharing potato farming know-how enables farmers to increase their potato yield up to threefold, as well as aid in the eradication of disease and pests. It also involves the introduction of resilient seed potatoes suitable for erratic weather conditions resulting from climate change.

Community co-ops are developed to facilitate storage, secure better prices and collectively manage seasonal food gaps. We provide advice on packaging, creating a brand and growing a business. All of this allows Keogh's Farm to offset its carbon emissions – it's simply a win-win for our business.

Supermarkets and foodservice operators now demand that their suppliers have clear sustainable strategies to help them reach their own sustainable targets, creating a positive domino effect across the Irish food sector. This gives us a unique point of difference against our competitors.

Origin Green Gold members, BRC Accredited.

Building a new plant that is Carbon Neutral.

Maintaining Growth – meeting consumer needs

Keeping sustainability on the agenda and staying aware of healthy eating habits

This has been eventually managed by building a new Greenfield plant in Dublin.

Accessed 30/6/023 https://businessplus.ie/sme/origin-green-profile-keoghs/

Accessed 30/6/23: https://www.keoghsfarm.com/keoghs-and-vita-sustainability/

Accessed 30/6/23: https://www.irishtimes.com/business/2023/04/21/the-irish-times-business-person-of-the-month-tom-keogh-managing-director-of-keoghs-crisps/