100th anniversary of the establishment of the Castlelyons Co-operative

On June 16th this year, the community of Castlelyons and Glanbia will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the Castlelyons Co-operative in 1917.

The idea for Castlelyons Co-op was initiated in 1916 and implemented in 1917. The original creamery in the village was owned by Jim Dunlea and bought out by local dairy farmers, who in turn established the co-operative.

Farmers brought their milk to the co-operative and brought home animal feed and groceries. The co-operative in Castlelyons was among the first to be established in Ireland and was one of the most significant in Munster in its early years.

David Murphy, Chairperson of the local advisory committee, said it is important to remember the bravery of the founding fathers of the co-operative 100 years ago. “If you look back in history these were very difficult times for Ireland, the centre of Dublin lay in ruins after the Rising, World War 1 was raging at the time. They were volitile times and yet people were prepared to put their hands into the pockets on an ideal and they funded the organisation of the co-operative that led to real wealth creation in the area.” Castlelyons Co-op was established with a 700-cow guarentee to the Irish Agricultural Organisation Society (IAOS), the administrative body for co-operatives.

Over the last 100 years, the co-operative in Castlelyons has been a huge driver in the creation of jobs and wealth for the local community. In celebration of that, an exciting event to mark the occasion will take place on Friday June 16th in Glanbia Agribusiness Castlelyons. There will be lots to see and do on the day with a FREE barbeque, a local history display, the unveiling of a commemorative plaque, the launch of a commemorative book plus we will have lots of spot prizes and customer giveaways too.

Friday, June 16th will be an all-inclusive event, the committee said, with farmer shareholders, employees, former employees and the local community welcome to attend.

First Published 4 April 2017