Photo of the week

Irish Food Writing Awards 2023, held in the RDS, Dublin. October 2023 Margret Leahy, Philip Doyle, Dee Laffan, Janine Kennedy and Ciara Leahy from Irish Country Living celebrate awards at the Irish Food Writing Awards 2023 in the RDS. Janine Kennedy won best in Seafood writing and best in Spirits writing for her work in Irish Country Living and Irish Country Magazine while Dee laffan won for her Podcast. ‘Spicebags’

Letters to the editor

Dear Ciara,

Sincere thanks for including me as part of your group at the Women & Agriculture conference this year at the Lyrath Hotel in Kilkenny. I really enjoyed seeing everyone and watching the team execute a wonderfully successful conference like clockwork or a jigsaw with everything falling into place without a hitch.

Having attended all the previous conferences, I honestly think it was the most successful of all. The singing entertainment was lovely and different and very appropriately timed. Congratulations to all the Journal team.

Sincerely, Mary McGreal

Hi all,

A great day out again.

Well done to all the organisers. The location was excellent, especially the food and

service. Brilliant.

Regards, Phil Foley

To the team in Irish Country Living,

I am still laughing from listening to Brendan Courtney on stage at the Women & Agriculture

conference. He was so entertaining and funny, and yet he had a very important message on care for the elderly and the Fair Deal Scheme.

A great day out and I look forward to next year.

Regards, Lorraine Murphy

Number of the week

Over 600 women attended this year’s Women& Agriculture conference where the theme was ‘Finding the Balance’. The flagship event was held in the Lyrath Hotel, Co Kilkenny on 25 October, 2023.

Consumer tips

According to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (who recently published their Consumer Contacts Report for the first half of 2023), 18,860 consumers made contact with their helpline from January to June of this year to make complaints or receive guidance. This was a 14% increase from the same period the year previous.

Complaints regarding faulty goods and services topped the list of consumer issues. The CCPC has the following advice for dealing with these problems: Deal with the shop, not the manufacturer – the shop needs to address the issue if you bought something from them and it’s faulty. Act fast – while consumer rights last up to six years, your rights are strongest within the first 30 days or up to the first year.

Know your rights – your rights might differ slightly from warranties or guarantees, so read up on consumer law in Ireland and the EU. Check out ccpc.ie.

Quote of the week

Let’s say you’re having a hard day at work. Because you’re running and you have to focus on the road and the people and where you’re going, your earlier problem goes into the background. It kind of puts things into perspective because you’re out, you’re able to run around, you’re having your exercise and any issue you might be having at work or in your life, it seems much less important than when you set off.

You’re a lot happier and relaxed after it.”

Virtual runner, John Jennings

Online pick of the week

Louth-based artist, Leonora Reilly.

In this week’s Meet the Maker, Maria Moynihan speaks with

Louth-based artist, Leonora Reilly.

Read more

Find out what caught the eye of the Irish Country Living

Find out what caught the eye of the Irish Country Living