Dublin's Olivia Nash has been crowned the 2026 National Brown Bread Baking Champion, with 15-year-old Cara Wall, also from Dublin, taking the Junior title at the National Ploughing Championships in Screggan, Tullamore, Co. Offaly.
The two winners were announced on Thursday, 17 September, at the end of three days of live baking in the Euronics Brown Bread Baking tent, bringing this year's Euronics National Brown Bread Baking Competitions, run in association with the National Ploughing Association (NPA) and the Irish Countrywomen's Association (ICA), to a close.
L–R: 2026 Senior champion Olivia Nash, NPA Managing Director Anna May McHugh and 2026 Junior champion Cara Wall.
Olivia Nash Wins the 2026 Senior Title
Olivia, from Tallaght in Dublin, saw off seven other senior finalists from around the country to claim the top prize of €5,000 in cash together with a NEFF Slide&Hide® oven worth over €2,000.
Her winning loaf breaks with tradition in a couple of ways. Olivia bakes her brown bread with Guinness, and adds honey and treacle to keep the loaf moist — a habit she puts down to her husband's dislike of dry bread. The result is a slightly sweeter, denser loaf that the judges described as having real balance of appearance and flavour, and as "the type of bread someone would want to take home".
"I thought my husband was lying that my bread was nice, but I'm really happy to learn he's been telling the truth the past few years and I'm delighted to have won!"
— Olivia Nash, 2026 National Brown Bread Baking Champion
Olivia, a digital marketing executive who shares her baking online and has a keen interest in reducing food waste through home baking, was joined at the final by her seven-month-old daughter Mabel, whom she credits as her lucky charm.
Congratulations also go to the other senior finalists who baked on the final day: Therese Lonergan (Westmeath), Ann Loftus (Mayo) and Sarah Davitt (Mayo), who each received a €500 Euronics gift card and a goody bag.
Cara Wall Crowned Junior Champion
In only the second year of the Junior National Brown Bread Baking Competition, 15-year-old Cara Wall from Dublin took the title using a family recipe passed down from her grandmother.
Cara wins a €1,500 Euronics voucher, and her school will also receive a €1,500 Euronics voucher. The judges praised her loaf for its appearance, flavour, smell and soft crust, and admitted the junior decision took a full half an hour to settle.
"I'm delighted to win and I'm glad that I got to use my grandmother's recipe. My school will also love the voucher!"
— Cara Wall, 2026 Junior National Brown Bread Baking Champion
Well done too to junior finalists Callum McKeague (Donegal), Aoife Ruddock (Leitrim) and Lucy Tate (Cork), who each received a €300 Euronics gift card and a goody bag.
Three Days of Live Baking at the Ploughing
The finals took place in the Euronics Brown Bread Baking tent at the 95th National Ploughing Championships, with the senior and junior semi-finals held on Tuesday 15 and Wednesday 16 September before the grand finals on Thursday 17 September. Every finalist baked live in front of a packed tent on NEFF ovens, with the loaves cooled, sliced and tasted on stage.
The judging panel this year was chef Eleanor Martin, Thelma Burke of the ICA and Eileen Brennan, herself the National Brown Bread Baking Champion back in 1973. Between the regional heats and the Ploughing itself, the judges worked their way through hundreds of loaves from every corner of the country before settling on this year's two champions.
As always, the tent was one of the busiest spots at the Ploughing, with standing room only for the final announcements on Thursday afternoon.
A Tradition Since 1954
The National Brown Bread Baking Competition has been part of the National Ploughing Championships since 1954, celebrating one of Ireland's best-loved baking traditions. The Junior competition was introduced in 2025 to give the next generation of home bakers their own place on the national stage — and, as this year's final showed, the standard is already every bit as high.
Euronics Ireland would like to thank the National Ploughing Association, the Irish Countrywomen's Association, NEFF, our judges, and every baker who entered this year's competition. Congratulations once again to Olivia and Cara, our 2026 champions.
Bake Like a Champion at Home
Inspired to try your own brown bread? Olivia's prize, the NEFF Slide&Hide® oven, is available in Euronics stores nationwide, and you'll find everything from stand mixers to built-in ovens at your local Euronics store or on euronics.ie.
Keep an eye on our Brown Bread Baking Competition page for details of the 2027 competition.
