Irish Whiskey Association announces scholarship opportunity with Maynooth University

• Calls for increased government supports for Brewing and Distilling jobs in Ireland.

The Irish Whiskey Association, the trade association representing the Irish Whiskey sector on the island of Ireland, has today announced a scholarship opportunity with Maynooth University on its Brewing and Distilling micro-credential.

The Irish Whiskey Association will sponsor one place on this micro-credential, which aims to equip learners with the necessary scientific knowledge and instrumentation competencies to develop skills relevant to the alcoholic drinks industry. The course was created in response to the strong demand for an analytical course to support the growing Irish craft brewing and whiskey industries.

The Irish Whiskey Association has also called on the incoming government to provide additional supports to the third-level institutions offering courses – both full- and part-time – in the brewing and distilling sector to ensure their positive continuation and a further strengthening of the industry at this pivotal time.

Director of the Irish Whiskey Association, Eoin Ó Catháin, noted: “Recent reports on the value of the Irish drinks sector show that it now easily exceeds €2 billion euro, and there are now around 10,000 people directly employed in brewing and distilling in Ireland. The strength of the sector, however, increases the demand for skills and expertise among our drinks producers. There are now full time Bachelor courses in Brewing and Distilling offered in South-East Technical University (SETU) and Technological University Dublin (TUD), and a micro-credential in Maynooth University, but we need further support to promote these courses. In order for our sector to continue growing and remain competitive, we must be able to rely on our indigenous workforce.”

This need is acutely felt by companies seeking to fill vacancies in this competitive environment. Bernard Walsh, the Founder of Walsh Whiskey, has been at the coalface of this burgeoning industry since 1999 and has witnessed firsthand the lack of available talent. Speaking of his experience when opening the Royal Oak Distillery in 2016:

“There were very few available brewers or distillers in Ireland, and we were forced to compete with more established companies for access to this dwindling pool of potential employees. We worked with SETU along with other industry experts and supported Carlow (SETU) in setting up the country’s first Honours degree program in Brewing and Distilling in 2017. This has delivered scores of new graduates to the industry, but still does not meet demand”.

Walsh Whiskey has been an active advocator encouraging students to consider a career in Brewing & Distilling with its Annual Walsh Whiskey Bursary (since 2017) at SETU.

The Irish Whiskey Association therefore requests further support from the incoming Minister for Higher Education, once government formation has been finalised, along with greater emphasis on promoting the home-grown opportunities for this growing sector. The Irish Whiskey Association welcomes any opportunity to host the future Minister in visiting the site of one of these courses and learning more about the gainful and fulfilling employment the sector offers.

In the meantime, however, focus is on the upcoming micro-credential and the Irish Whiskey Association sponsorship.

Speaking to the micro-credential in Maynooth University, Professor Denise Rooney, from the Chemistry Department at MU, contributor to the micro-credential course, added: “Our micro-credential course in Brewing & Distilling Science is both co-designed and co-delivered by industry experts and academics at MU and was created in response to the strong demand for an analytical course to support the growing Irish craft brewing and traditional whiskey industries. Comprising of online lectures, tutorials and virtual lab simulations, this micro-credential course will be run over a 12-week period including a practical experience in Maynooth University’s modern labs. This course is ideal for new entrants into the distilling industry or those wishing to gain more in-depth knowledge in the area.”

Further information on the micro-credential can be found here.