Alltech founder and president Pearse Lyons has been named business person of the year by Business and Finance, the leading business magazine in Ireland, Lyons' native country.

Lyons, who heads the Nicholasville-based global animal nutrition giant, received the award at a ceremony Tuesday in Dublin.

His fellow honorees included Duncan Niederauer, chief executive of NYSE Euronext, operator of the New York Stock Exchange, which Thursday agreed to sell itself to the IntercontinentalExchange.

"All of my pursuits as a businessman ... have been fueled by the fiery passion I inherited from the Irish," Lyons said in a statement.

Lyons is a native of Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland. A biochemist by training, he established Alltech in 1980. The company has grown to employ 2,800 people and do business in 128 countries, with annual sales of about $750 million, according to the company.