Cavan company joins Accelerate Green Programme
A Cavan agri firm has been selected as one of only eight rising green businesses from across Ireland taking part in the 2024 Bord na Móna Accelerate Green Programme.
Co-founded by Shane O’Reilly and Sandra Thompson, I/O Agri of Corraneary, Canningstown, offers high-tech solutions for sustainable farming practices across all areas of the supply chain, from ventilation to heating, milling to feed systems, as well as data monitoring and reporting.
Delivered by Bord na Móna in conjunction with Resolve Partners, the Accelerate Green Programme is dedicated to scaling early-stage enterprises, SMEs and start-ups that are leading the response to climate action and sustainability. The rollout of Accelerate Green is part of Bord na Mona’s €5M commitment to support the growth of Ireland’s rising green innovator network between 2022 and 2025.
I/O Agri is joined by three Monaghan-based companies on this year's intake.
ACEL Energy based out of the M-Tek unit near Monaghan Town offers tailored renewable solutions such as solar, battery storage, and energy management through a co-ownership model; while SomaTech is a scalable solid-state fermentation platform that uses fungal mycelium to upcycle locally produced byproducts to manufacture sustainable ingredients for food companies.
Lastly, Universal Graphics in Emyvale specialises in eco-friendly high-technology printing.
As part of the programme, the eight companies will undergo a series of immersive learning sessions and mentoring workshops across eight weeks in the dedicated Accelerate Green hub in Boora, Co Offaly. Participants will engage with a diverse range of speakers including representatives from enterprise and energy agencies, Irish corporate entities, research networks, investors, as well as gaining access to senior leaders from across Bord na Móna’s business.
The participants will also gain insight into Bord na Móna’s commercial expertise and learnings as a business that has fully transitioned from Brown to Green – pivoting from a traditional peat business to a leading climate solutions and renewable energy company.
Twenty-five Irish businesses have successfully completed the programme since it first launched in 2022 and the majority of these have continued to scale their offering of green products or services in the meantime.