Bree is the organiser of the Ballymaloe Festival of Food and co-host of its official podcast.
Originally from Australia, Bree has called Ballymaloe home for over two decades. As manager of the Ballymaloe Grainstore, she curates events that celebrate food, community and culture. Known for her warmth, creativity and deep love of Irish food traditions, Bree is at the heart of the festival experience, bringing people together through stories, flavour and connection.
The Ballymaloe Festival of Food could be the event that breaks her. The reality is she has a great team. They make the whole thing possible.
Bree@ballymaloe.com
Evanna is Festival Coordinator at the Ballymaloe Festival of Food, where she’s spent the last three years making sure chefs from near and far actually make it to East Cork—flights, beds, schedules and all. With over a decade of experience in festivals and events, she juggles chef relations, logistics and programming to help keep everything running smoothly behind the scenes.
A Cork native and Ballymaloe Cookery School graduate (2016), Evanna has spent many years working in food, with a particular sweet spot for pastry and baking. Her earlier career in fisheries management also feeds her love for sustainable food and responsible sourcing.
A champion of local, seasonal and sustainably produced ingredients, Evanna is happiest connecting people, producers and chefs to create the kind of food festival that leaves everyone well fed, inspired and maybe just a little bit sticky from pastry tasting.
Evanna@ballymaloe.com
Marlene helps placing the cogs (and kegs) that keep the festival wheel spinning—often handling the behind-the-scenes details that make everything come together.
With a background in Graphic Design and Arts & Crafts, she brings a creative eye and practical mindset to the team.
Originally from Germany and living in Ireland for the past ten years, she has firmly made Cork home. Passionate about community, good design and great food, she’s happiest when big ideas turn into beautifully executed realities (preferably with a well-organised spreadsheet nearby).
thegrainstore@ballymaloe.com
Victoria’s career has taken her through craft, heritage, the arts and community (though not all at the same time) — basically anywhere interesting things and people tend to gather.
Nearly twenty years ago she was a freelance event organiser at Ballymaloe Grainstore, working with Rory Allen to help shape the early festival programme.
After returning to study fine art in 2019, she pursues a visual arts practice in ink and watercolour — proving that organising events and making art are not mutually exclusive (though both involve a certain tolerance for chaos).
In 2026 she returned “home” to the Ballymaloe Grainstore, working with Bree and the festivals team to help create an ambitious and exciting programme of events.
victoria@ballymaloe.com
Tracie is the high‑energy, straight‑talking MC of the 2026 Ballymaloe “Cook the Books” stage, known for turning chef demos into cracking conversations and bringing the whole room along for the ride.
With 25+ years in kitchens and food businesses, from teaching at the world‑renowned Ballymaloe Cookery School to running an award‑winning Kilkenny café and now coaching cafés, restaurants and food brands across Ireland, she lives and breathes real‑world hospitality.
On Instagram she’s all about globally inspired food using local Irish ingredients, and behind the scenes she’s the “food business coach” who rolls up her sleeves, fixes menus, trims waste and boosts profits while keeping flavour front and centre.
Expect Tracie to keep chefs on their toes, champion Irish producers and make every “Cook the Books” session feel like a lively kitchen table chat – with a side of insider tips for anyone dreaming of their own food business.
Darren runs Ballymaloe Farm in Shanagarry, where he’s spent the past number of years fine-tuning a thoughtful, forward-thinking approach to tillage. With a strong focus on soil health, biodiversity and doing more with less, he’s always looking for practical ways to improve how the land is worked.
Blending experience with a willingness to try new ideas, Darren is part of a new generation of farmers balancing tradition with innovation — from cover crops to reduced inputs, always keeping a close eye on what works best in the field.
Curious, hands-on and quietly driven, he’s as interested in long-term sustainability as he is in getting the best from each season.
Rory took a farm shed and saw its potential. In 2009 he opened the Ballymaloe Grainstore with back to back weddings and has not looked back.
With a keen eye for detail and a passion for music, Rory has been instrumental in shaping the Grainstore into a vibrant cultural hub. His journey began with a vision to create a space where community, creativity and culinary excellence converge.
Rory will be found over the festival weekend playing his mandolin and keeping a close eye on the goings on.
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Ted brings a distinctive flair to the festival, playing a key role in both the build and the pop-up dining experiences. He has a way of keeping things running smoothly behind the scenes, approaching even the busiest moments with a calm that (at times) feels almost too relaxed for the pace of it all.
From coordinating setups to shaping the overall flow, he blends organisation with an instinctive feel for how things should come together. But Ted’s not just working in the background — he’s just as much part of the atmosphere itself.
You’ll find him spinning tunes at the disco brunch, setting the tone early, before stepping things up later and raising the roof in the shed after dark.
Joleen is a Irish photographer, storyteller and co-host of the Ballymaloe Festival of Food Podcast.
She has been capturing the spirit of Ballymaloe and Ireland’s food culture for years through her photography, videos and social media content.
Passionate about local producers, sustainable food systems and ethical storytelling, Joleen brings warmth, creativity and curiosity to every conversation and is always focused on celebrating the people and flavours that matter.
Caroline has been focused on food since editing Ireland’s first food website for RTÉ in 2000. An award-winning writer and columnist with the Irish Examiner and Irish Country Living, she is frequently to be found on stage, having the craic while hosting talks, demos and discussions at festivals and events with Bord Bia Bloom, Euro Toques Ireland and the Cork Kerry Food Festival. Caroline established Bibliocook: All About Food (www.bibliocook.com) in 2005, is the author of The Official Guinness Cookbook and co-author of Sláinte: The Complete Guide to Irish Craft Beer and Cider. She is a member of the Irish Food Writers’ Guild, a McKenna's Guide Editor, a graduate of Ballymaloe Cookery School and a Blas na hÉireann Food Champion. Caroline is also the head of marketing for independent Irish microbrewery Eight Degrees Brewing.
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Dee is a journalist and editor with over 20 years' experience specialising in food, drink, travel and hospitality. Dee currently writes columns with Irish Country Magazine and TheTaste.ie and, in 2022, she founded Scoop, an annual indie food magazine published by Nine Bean Rows Books. Scoop aims to connect readers through stories of the flavours and feelings that shape our lives. The Scoop Substack launched at the start of 2026, and the events side of the magazine is called ‘scoop and a yarn’ where Dee hosts in-person storytelling events to create fun experiences of delicious banter and craic.
Dee also co-authored Blasta Book #5 SOUP and is co-host of Beár Bia Podcast with Oisín Davis, which focuses on Irish food and drink pairings. She regularly hosts stages and participates in the lineups at festivals, including Ballymaloe Festival of Food. Dee is a member of the Irish Food Writers’ Guild and a judge of Blas na hÉireann.
Shane has been designing websites for more than wenty-five years, which either makes him very experienced, or just very old, depending on how you look at it.
An award-winning web designer with a particular love for design and illustration, he has a knack for building sites that look great and actually work.
When he's not pushing pixels he can be found watching hurling, often shouting advice that nobody asked for.
shane@pridedesign.ie