Published: Wednesday, 30th December, 2009 5:15pm

Huge crowd gather for Snowcream history launch

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The much anticipated launch of the Snowcream book took place in the Grand Hotel recently with over 300 people in attendance.

Snowcream (Midlands) Ltd., Moate, 1958-2001, Memories, is the result of many long evenings of work, discussion and enterprise. Editor Seamus Claffey spoke on the launch night outlining the scenario, Joe Byrne had an idea, Joe Keane and Ambrose Galvin liked the idea, Seamus was cajoled into acting as editor. Mary Keane scanned and edited the photographs.

The book, published by the milk suppliers is a wonderful read, not only for those with an association with the business but also for anyone with an interest in Moate or indeed with social history.

The background to the setting up of the business is set out with great clarity, the association with the many people involved in driving the business is explained as is the reason why no producer was a director, despite the role of Michéal Malone in the establishment of the business. Michéal was a seven time winner of the quality award from the Milk Producers Association and was acknowledged on the night of the launch.

The articles written by Paul Keyes and John Ward are a great history of the organisation, both men served under the original structure and the later Dawn Dairies model.

Paul, who started in Moate in 1982, is now a senior manager in the Dawn Group, based in Galway. His very well written and informative article is a record of the rapid changes in the industry over the years, although many would take issue with the inevitability of the relocation of the business away from a central location like Moate to its current base in Galway.

John Ward covers the role of transportation manager in the business with wonderful stories of the expanded role that many of the employees took on behalf of the company, the joys of distribution in icy conditions was appropriate reading over the current season of goodwill.

An excellent selection of pictures accompany the text in the book and I have to assume that many of the names were just not available, we would all love to know who the people featured actually are. As a non native of the town I was interested to see how many people had actually enjoyed a long association with Snowcream, I would know them in their current roles, but it was great to see the younger versions as featured in the book.

The former managers of the plant are all acknowledged with a lovely piece on the longest serving manager, Liam Cornally. While reading about Liam I recalled the huge financial contributions Snowcream made to the many voluntary organisations in the town, a loss that would be hard to quantify in the present era.

If you want to know what drove a farmer to call some staff "Ye shower of useless ****ers" the explanation is in the book. A great production, very high standards all round and a highly recommended read.