The annual award honoring an individual who has enhanced business relationships between the two countries was the highlight of the Council’s 50th Annual Dinner, held  8 November at the Metropolitan Club in New York City. A keen businessman and celebrated visionary, Dr. Lyons was praised for his work to establish economic bonds with Ireland as the leader of Alltech, a global animal health and nutrition company headquartered in Nicholasville, Ky. A native of Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland, Dr. Lyons has helped revolutionise the animal feed industry with Alltech’s natural solutions. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University College Dublin, Ireland, and a master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Birmingham, England. He worked as a biochemist at Irish distilleries before establishing Alltech in 1980. “We in this Council are extraordinarily pleased to recognise the substantial contributions made by Pearse Lyons during his impressive career as an entrepreneur and businessman,” said Dennis Swanson, the president of the Ireland-US Council based in New York. “He has built an impressive enterprise that has its roots in Ireland but scored its early dramatic growth in the United States. We are delighted to recognise his extraordinary contributions in building commercial connections between Ireland and the United States. Through his leadership, vision and hard work, the economic and business bonds between America and Ireland have been greatly strengthened and enhanced. The members and directors of the Council are delighted to honor such an outstanding and worthy recipient with an award that is so richly-deserved.”