Co Monaghan’s Greenlea Rhapsody wins the 2024 Baileys cow

The owners were presented with a cheque for €3,000 and the Virginia Milk Products Cup at the 81ST Virginia Show in Co. Cavan by Minister for Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys TD alongside competition co-sponsors, Diageo Ireland and its cream supplier Tirlán. The cow also won the Best Protein award and was the Best Exhibitor Bred cow.

In congratulating the winner, Minister Humphreys said: “The Baileys Champion Cow competition has been running for over 40 years and it is definitely the one to win for dairy breeders. We have seen the crème de la crème of our dairy cows on show here in Virginia today. I want to congratulate all of the competitors and it’s a great honour for me as Minister for Rural and Community Development to present the award in this prestigious competition which showcases the incredible strength of our dairy sector in Ireland.”

The Diageo Baileys Cow highlights and rewards dairy breeding excellence. Strength, body conformation and proven excellence in quality milk production are base-line criteria upon which a winner is selected. The judge, Markus Hock praised the winning cow: “Not so often do you find a cow as old as she, winning a competition like this. She was the best cow, just beautiful and fantastic for her age.”

Knowlesmere Jones Unix Victoria VG owned by Gary and Izzy Jones from Co. Wexford and also Andrew and Jane Whittaker in England, was declared Reserve Champion. Honourable Mention went to Hallow Octain Twizzle, owned by Philip and Linda Jones from Co. Wexford.

Other prizes were awarded in specialist categories. These included Diageo Baileys Champion Best Heifer in Milk which was won by Slatabogie Lambda Gold from Co. Londonderry owned by Alan and Leanne Paul. Best EBI Award went to Desmond Radio Rozelle from Co. Limerick owned by Martin O’Sullivan. Best Junior Cow was awarded to Hallow Denver Twizzle VG89 owned by Philip and Linda Jones from Co. Wicklow.

Acknowledging the commitment of the farmers who took part, Robert Murphy Head of Baileys Operations at Diageo said: “This event annually celebrates the superior quality of Baileys Irish Cream and its roots in Virginia through our supplier, Tirlán. Today’s event was a spectacular showcase of dairy excellence and the dedication of Irish farming families. On behalf of Diageo and the Baileys Operations team congratulations to all the winners and thank you to every entrant for another outstanding competition.”

Also speaking at the event Tirlán Chairperson, John Murphy said: “Competitions like this showcase the steadfast dedication of the farming community to high quality breeding, sustainability and unrivalled animal welfare standards. The Virginia Show showcases the very best in our agricultural sector which is a key driver of our rural economy. Family farms are the heartbeat of rural Ireland and we’re proud to support the Virginia Show and the rural economy.”

Earlier in the day the Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris visited the show. He met with the dairy breeders who had entered the competition and thanked the local shows committees and volunteers all over the country for their hard work and dedication to these important events in the agricultural calendar.