Galway Advertiser food columnist Anne Marie Carroll has become the newest member of the Irish Food Writers’ Guild, news which will come as no surprise to her regular readers. She joins some of the most prominent names in the country including Darina Allen, Georgina Campbell, and Biddy White Lennon (currently a judge on TV3’s Great Irish Bake Off ) in this prestigious group.
The Irish Food Writers’ Guild was formed in 1990 to promote high professional standards of knowledge and practice among writers about food, nutrition, and food history. The guild enjoys close links with associations like Euro-Toques, Irish food boards, and other professional bodies in the food industry both in Ireland and abroad. Membership is by invitation only to established food writers with an acknowledged and substantial body of work.
“I am so honoured to be invited to be a member of the guild,” Ms Carroll said. “For a food writer there is no greater compliment.”
Guild members like Anne Marie Carroll are, by the nature of their work as writers and in particular Ms Carroll’s involvement with the Galway Food Festival, in touch with food producers, food retailers, restaurateurs, and other professional bodies in the industry. “When I started my column in the Galway Advertiser over three years ago I never imagined the opportunities it would bring me,” she recalled.
“It is incredibly flattering to be counted among the most respected food and cookery writers in the country.”
In 1993 the guild started to promote outstanding quality, craftsmanship, and innovation in the production of food in Ireland. The annual IFWG Awards are now widely acknowledged as among the country’s most prestigious food awards.
These awards are renowned for their integrity, in that companies cannot enter themselves, and products are bought by IFWG members – with winners voted on at a formal tasting meeting. Anne Marie Carroll is looking forward to contributing to the group, especially in drawing attention to the excellent produce from the west.
“My job is easy when I’m writing about the things I am most passionate about, our brilliant restaurants and producers here in the west,” she said. “I regularly run out of column inches in my enthusiasm, I may need another page.
