Six months of meetings meant a lot of tea and coffee. One cup every two minutes was consumed during the Irish presidency writes Joe Humphreys
The total of 110,360 hot beverages helped to wash down 39,036 lunches and 9,834 dinners, including 12,000 meals on the weekend of Accession Day - May 1st - alone. Some 3,724 cases of Tipperary mineral water were used over the six months and 1,986 floral arrangements provided.
A major workload for event managers Corporate Solutions, although the company's managing director Padraic O'Kane wasn't complaining. "We're praying the presidency comes back to us in another six years," said the former caterer who helped to set up the firm less than three years ago.
It co-ordinated more than 350 events, including all those at Dublin Castle, Kilmainham and Farmleigh, each of which was turned into a "hotel operation" for the last six months, said Mr O'Kane. More than 500 catering staff in Dublin and 1,000 outside the capital were employed through contractors, all of whom were rebranded by Corporate Solutions to create a single State catering image.
Working with An Bord Bia, they concentrated on using Irish produce, with rack of Irish spring lamb and Baileys Irish cheesecake emerging as the most popular dishes.
While the company said it had no specific budget, it claims to have saved the Government from 10 to 15 per cent in catering costs by negotiating in bulk.