Celebration and Recognition – Ruth Hegarty

Regina Jardin is originally from the Philippines; She love food and she believes that the food we eat is intricately intertwined with our culture. She enjoys learning, exploring cultures and computer games which she believes is the reason she is open to diversity.

Food makes nearly everything better, food brings people, ages, genders and classes together. Food is the key to the door of happiness.

Sometimes we are unaware that we are being irresponsible consumers, we take food for granted and we waste a lot of it. We never realise how food production contributes to global warming and how our negative food choices can impact on our biodiversity. (i) Ruth Hegarty recognises this but also recognises that the food system is incredibly complex, as citizens we are often set up to fail when it comes to ‘doing the right thing’, and that many people globally do not have easy choices when it comes to food, and these are things she wants to change.

Ruth Hegarty is a motivated and skilled professional with over 16 years of experience in the areas of food, farming, tourism and hospitality business and policy. Ruth is passionate about food, from soil to plate and beyond. She advocates for and supports small food producers and farmers, food education, and access to good food for all. She is the agency director of egg&chicken(ii). Ruth is inspired by her family who are also passionate about food culture, she is always passionate about a fairer and cleaner food system, promoting and developing our food culture. Ruth has dedicated her career to the betterment of the food system. (iii)

egg&chicken is involved in different projects that aim to make a positive contribution to the food industry by hosting events or different workshops, Since 2015 in Galway, Ruth was part of international food symposium Food on the edge which brings together chefs, food professionals, activists, journalists and more from all over the world to discuss the future of food, as well as showcasing the food and farming of the West of Ireland and building a global network. egg&chicken has managed funding and partnerships for the event. Ruth Hegarty, with collaborator Jamie Gorman, facilitated a series of workshops with community groups around Galway city and county to explore people’s interactions with and the impacts of food in their daily lives. The workshops examined people’s perceptions and experiences of food and their own diets through the lenses of health, access, and culture. The workshop series aimed to bring in voices that are not normally heard from when it comes to conversations around food and food policy, which gives us a broader perspective when it comes to culture, health and our own values and beliefs. Ruth understands the culture and importance of healthy food, which relates to Sustainable Development Goal number 2, Zero Hunger and Goal 3, Good Health and Well-being. egg&chicken manages a project called Global Goals Business Conversations which aims to engage Irish businesses in the UN Sustainable Development goals while identifying actions they can take to influence a more sustainable future locally, nationally, and globally. (iv)

egg&chicken provides strategic consultancy, facilitation services and much more to a wide variety of clients and projects from individual businesses and business to producer groups, festivals and events, NGOs, community groups, state bodies and government. Ruth is also known as an experienced moderator, presenter and facilitator.
egg&chicken is advocating and promoting a healthier and more sustainable way of food consumption that supports communities and aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals. Ruth aims to promote a fairer, more equitable food system that provides viable livelihoods for small-scale farmers and producers and nourishes people, communities, and the planet. (v)

References:

(i)Egg and Chicken (2020), “What We Do • Egg&Chicken.” Egg&Chicken, Available online: https://eggandchicken.ie/what-we-do/ [Accessed 10th March 2021]

(ii) LinkedIn [Accessed 10th March 2021]
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruthhegarty/?originalSubdomain=ie
Food on the edge (2020) “Our Team.”

(iii) Food On The Edge, Available Online: https://foodontheedge.ie/our-team/#:~:text=Ruth%20Hegarty%20is%20owner%20of%20egg%26chicken%2C%20a%20specialist,food%20education%2C%20culinary%20education%20and%20training%2C%20food%20 [Accessed 10th March 2021].

(iv) Egg and chicken website [Accessed 10th of March 2021]

(v) Egg and chicken website [Accessed 10th of March 2021]