Now Ye're Talking - to an Irish Farmer

Boards.ie: Niamh

Our next AMA is with an Irish farmer.

He is a self-employed beef and tillage farmer in his late 40's, farming in the midlands. He has also been a dairy farmer in the past and will be happy to answer any questions you might have about farming or about rural life or about where the food on your dinner plate comes from

ChippingSodbury

Why did you get out of dairy?

How would you assess the level of education among your peers? Do you think they are more of the opinion "sure that's the way we always did it" or "I can't wait to see the new technologies/ methods and try them out"?

Do you think Teagasc does a good job?

I'd love to be a farmer by the way (but I don't think I'd survive on my 2 acres!)

Sam Kade

Why did you change from dairying to beef and tillage?

Tazium

Ever pull the udder one?

KonFusion

Do you find beef/tillage easier than dairy?

Do you worry about the legacy/future of the farm when you retire?

Do you think farmers are more socially isolated than other professions? If yes, have you found any good ways to get around this?

Do you find it easy/hard to find reliable part-time workers to take care of things if you need to leave the farm for a holiday/wedding/funeral etc?

I travel a lot and have personally found that Ireland definitely has one of the best quality beef in world. Is there a sense of pride among Irish beef farmers regarding the quality produced?

How big is the herd? Do you plan to expand?

Edit: Sorry, lots of questions! I find farming fascinating as I don't think I'd ever be able to it myself! Tough job

quainy

What is your take on this "new generation" of young farmers that are starting farms with more technology based systems in place?

If ever anyone on this board was looking to begin farming, how would you advise them to go about it?

Looking back at all your time in farming, is there anything you would have done differently (from a business standpoint) and why?

kupus

has headage ruined irish farming for the future?
Do you think putting all your eggs into one basket for the dairying and milk industry is dangerous. ( lil dairy farmers being over-regulated so the bigger ones can come in and take over the family business)
How much of a prick is larry the godman?
HOw can irish farms compete with the factory farms of africa.
HOw can you stop supermarkets/factories from dictating the prices?
Just like in every business in ireland today excluding multinationals... is ireland over regulated so people are just giving up business and farming?

I'm a Farmer, AMA

Good evening all, thanks Niamh for setting me up for this. I'll log in here a few times a day and try answer as many questions as possible, piease bear in mind that I type with 2 fingers and the internet has been a bit dodgy here with all the rain.

ChippingSodbury wrote: »

Why did you get out of dairy?

How would you assess the level of education among your peers? Do you think they are more of the opinion "sure that's the way we always did it" or "I can't wait to see the new technologies/ methods and try them out"?

Do you think Teagasc does a good job?

I'd love to be a farmer by the way (but I don't think I'd survive on my 2 acres!)

I got out when the price of milk went lower than when quotas came in, I couldn't expand, and I was in college as a mature student.

Some are very traditional, others embrace new technology, I suppose a lot depends on how they were brought up/educated themselves.

By and Large Teagasc does a good job, there are some very good advisors there, I don't know much about the research side of things though.

KonFusion wrote: »

Do you find beef/tillage easier than dairy?
Do you worry about the legacy/future of the farm when you retire?

Do you think farmers are more socially isolated than other professions? If yes, have you found any good ways to get around this?

Do you find it easy/hard to find reliable part-time workers to take care of things if you need to leave the farm for a holiday/wedding/funeral etc?
I travel a lot and have personally found that Ireland definitely has one of the best quality beef in world. Is there a sense of pride among Irish beef farmers regarding the quality produced?
How big is the herd? Do you plan to expand?
Edit: Sorry, lots of questions! I find farming fascinating as I don't think I'd ever be able to it myself! Tough job

Lifestyle is much better as a beef and tillage farmer, but money is tighter. It's a lot easier now to head off on a sunday and not have to be back at a certain time to milk. Not really worried about the 'legacy' I have one son and I hope he'll take it on, but only as a part timer.
Yes it can be isolating, I used to do a bit of amateur drama, and was involved in Macra when I was younger.

I have a guy that gives me a hand when I need him, especially working with cattle, he is very reliable, and knows my farm well, so if I was away he's able to look after things.
Yes there is a sense of pride in our produce, more later:)
Herd is approx 50 suckler cows+calves+finishing cattle. I don't buy in, just finish all the calves born on the farm, total herd number now is 120. No plans to expand as yet.

quainy wrote: »

What is your take on this "new generation" of young farmers that are starting farms with more technology based systems in place?
If ever anyone on this board was looking to begin farming, how would you advise them to go about it?
Looking back at all your time in farming, is there anything you would have done differently (from a business standpoint) and why?

Anything that makes life easier is good, but it has to pay for itself, no point in having €200k invested in a tractor if it's idle either, there is a happy medium and every farm is different.
It's basically a closed shop, we are way behind NZ in this where they have a system of shared farming, which allows young ppl from outside farming to work their way up.
With the benefit of hindsight I'd have gone to Australia when I was 20!

kupus wrote: »

has headage ruined irish farming for the future?
Do you think putting all your eggs into one basket for the dairying and milk industry is dangerous. ( lil dairy farmers being over-regulated so the bigger ones can come in and take over the family business)
How much of a prick is larry the godman?
HOw can irish farms compete with the factory farms of africa.
HOw can you stop supermarkets/factories from dictating the prices?
Just like in every business in ireland today excluding multinationals... is ireland over regulated so people are just giving up business and farming?

Headage isn't really there anymore, direct payments I think are very unfairly distributed.
Not really sure TBH, harvest 2020 is the first time we have had a national plan for agriculture, and it's early days. Never met LG, but he is one shrewd businessman, you have to admire him.
I don't think we have too much to worry about from African factory farms, we are very efficient. Can't stop supermarkets. They have grown on cheap food policy in EU and USA.
Yes, have to agree, over regulation is a big problem, no doubt there will be more on this later.

Mars Bar

How have you been dealing with the recent floods or have you been affected at all?

bluecherry74

What's a typical day like for you?

Are your cattle fed solely on grass or is grain part of their diet? And would you say that's typical of Irish cattle?

Do you think beef farming in Ireland is ever going be done the way it is in the US, or is the traditional way sustainable?

moleyv

What actions, if any, do you take to avoid traffic building up behind your tractor?

Do you use N roads, or try to avoid them?

Gone West

How much road frontage do you have, any room for sites, and do you have a wife?

I said

Do you call it a sprong or a fork?

Shannon757

Do you get much silage cut?

jimmycrackcorm

If there were no grants or subsidized payments, would farming be possible at all in Ireland or what size of farm would you need to make it income sufficient?

I'm a Farmer, AMA

A fork;)

Fuzzy I'm spoken for:p. Road frontage? I was thinking this would come up, I was trying to work it out in my head last night before I went asleep, my guestimate is between 1.5 and 2 km. I hate ribbon development!

Moleyv if there is traffic behind me I pull in at the earliest, safe opportunity. I use every sort of road except motorways with the tractor.

Typical day;
At present almost all the cattle are in sheds so there is a bit more work feeding, bedding and looking after them. Cows are just starting to calve, so they are checked first thing. Next bulls get meal. Silage is pushed in at feed passages. I do the main feed in the late afternoon, just before dark. The closed period for spreading slurry has just ended, so today I was getting machinery ready for that. I start at 9am and this evening finished at 6pm, but cows will be checked again before I go to bed. That's roughly the routine at the moment, but it changes day to day.

Cattle's diet is mostly grass and silage, + some straw. Finishing cattle get rolled barley + bought in concentrate from the mill.

I think at the moment it is sustainable, but if subsidies go it will be factory farming in a very short space of time, with large farms specializing in one or two commodities.

Mars bar, I have some wet land that floods almost every winter and this was flooded a lot worse this year, but it would be a lot worse if me and a few neighbours hadn't cleaned a drain/stream about 4 years ago. My slurry tanks are almost full, but my drier land is ok to spread on now.

I'm a Farmer, AMA

Shannon757 wrote: »

Do you get much silage cut?

Approx 40 acres each year.

jimmycrackcorm wrote: »

If there were no grants or subsidized payments, would farming be possible at all in Ireland or what size of farm would you need to make it income sufficient?

Sort of answered it above, I reckon if subsidies went, and prices paid to farmers remained the same, there would be just factory farms+ a few part timers left. Look at the way pig farming has gone, 50 years ago nearly every farmer kept a few sows, now the only ppl with pigs are hobby farmers and specialist units of approx. 1000 sows and up. I don't know how many pig farmers there are in Ireland.

How big would depend on interest rates and the amount of money borrowed (net worth) of the farms. A small farm, well established with low borrowings could be a lot more profitable than a larger, perhaps expanding farm with high borrowings.

yourpics

I'm not from a farming background, but I love farming. Any advice on how to get into it, part time that is. Other than trying to chat to a farmer's daughter at the mart!

Shannon757

I'm a Farmer, AMA wrote: »

Approx 40 acres each year.

What do you get it cut with?

Dr Turk Turkelton

I said wrote: »

Do you call it a sprong or a fork?

I'm not a farmer and its not my ama but I feel I have to answer this one.
It's a freakin' grape.

I'm a Farmer, AMA

yourpics wrote: »

I'm not from a farming background, but I love farming. Any advice on how to get into it, part time that is. Other than trying to chat to a farmer's daughter at the mart!

I presume you heard the joke about a small fortune to be made in farming?

As I said above it really is a closed shop, but there are niche markets for eggs/poultry/cheese. I reckon this would be the way to go. Something with added value, selling direct to the consumer, higher margin.

yourpics

I'm a Farmer, AMA wrote: »

I presume you heard the joke about a small fortune to be made in farming?

As I said above it really is a closed shop, but there are niche markets for eggs/poultry/cheese. I reckon this would be the way to go. Something with added value, selling direct to the consumer, higher margin.

Not the money, just the love of it!

I'm a Farmer, AMA

Shannon757 wrote: »

What do you get it cut with?

I get a contractor in to do it, most of mine is pit silage, costs about €110 per acre, bales are more expensive/acre so I bale lighter cuts.

Shannon757

I'm a Farmer, AMA wrote: »

I get a contractor in to do it, most of mine is pit silage, costs about €110 per acre, bales are more expensive/acre so I bale lighter cuts.

Claas?

Yester

How much is your electricity bill now and how much was it when you were dairy farming?

Mehaffey1

Do you ever see a unifying Co op ever passing in Irish dairy similar to Fonterra?

What's the biggest yield you've got from a crop?

What tractor (s) do you have on farm and how do you find them?

Will anyone stop laughing at Valtra?

diomed

Is your head full of things to be done on the farm/things would like to do if you had more time/money.
If so list a few things you plan to do.

What do you wear for a day's work on the farm?
Are you an expert on Wellington boots?
Do you have a dry room for drying out wet clothes (we had at work).

I'm a Farmer, AMA

Yester wrote: »

How much is your electricity bill now and how much was it when you were dairy farming?

Roughly €1000 a year now, down from about €2,500, good question. A lot of other costs were reduced as well when I quit dairying.

beertons

How long have you had your favourite cow and what do you call it?

I'm a Farmer, AMA

diomed wrote: »

Is your head full of things to be done on the farm/things would like to do if you had more time/money.
If so list a few things you plan to do.

What do you wear for a day's work on the farm?
Are you an expert on Wellington boots?
Do you have a dry room for drying out wet clothes (we had at work).

Yes there's always something on the backburner/long finger. Most of them involve building work/repairs to older sheds. There's also:
Re-seeding
fencing
water leaks/troughs
Would it be worthwhile to buy a diet feeder for feeding cattle?
What will the impact of all these extra dairy calves to the beef sector?

Then there's short term stuff as well, like what needs to be done today/next week? Or by such a date?

Most days I wear cheap jeans from Dunnes! Maybe wash them 3 or 4 times and then they're gone, a T shirt, jumper (has to be wool) a top quality body warmer. If it's raining I wear a wax coat and a beanie hat. Not really an expert on wellies, I wear the same brand for about 20 years now, in summer I wear dealer boots. We don't have a 'dry' room, we call it a utility room, the fridge, freezer, washing machine and dryer are in there, I keep my yard clothes and boots there, if wet hang them near the stove.

Limestone Cowboy

What's your preferred breed of cow and what breed of bull do you use? Will Mayo win Sam?

I'm a Farmer, AMA

Mehaffey1 wrote: »

Do you ever see a unifying Co op ever passing in Irish dairy similar to Fonterra?

What's the biggest yield you've got from a crop?

What tractor (s) do you have on farm and how do you find them?

Will anyone stop laughing at Valtra?

Can't see it happening here, too many 'personalities' involved. On our road tankers from 4 different co-ops pass by and it is crazy TBH.

I got just over 3 ton/acre from a spring barley crop in 2014.

Older Ford here, and a 399 MF they are reliable, simple, no electronics.

Older Valtras have given good service, I heard of one 6400 with 13,000 hours and no trouble, have they been in NZ long? They came in here in the 1990's.

I'm a Farmer, AMA

Limestone Cowboy wrote: »

What's your preferred breed of cow and what breed of bull do you use? Will Mayo win Sam?

These are very personal questions, Mayo haven't a hope:D

I'm a Farmer, AMA

beertons wrote: »

How long have you had your favourite cow and what do you call it?

My oldest cow is about 8 years.

I remember Clint Eastwood being asked in a spaghetti western what was his horse's name, he said 'you don't give a name to somethin' you might have to eat, boy'.

Comic Book Guy

Ever had a bad experience with a Department inspector?!

I'm a Farmer, AMA

Comic Book Guy wrote: »

Ever had a bad experience with a Department inspector?!

I'll put it this way, I've never had a good experience with a dept inspector.

ganmo

would you be disappointed if your chap didn't want to take on the farm?

I'm a Farmer, AMA

ganmo wrote: »

would you be disappointed if your chap didn't want to take on the farm?

I don't think so, I would prefer him to have a choice. I'm fairly sure though that I'll be the last full time farmer here.

yourpics

I'm a Farmer, AMA wrote: »

I don't think so, I would prefer him to have a choice. I'm fairly sure though that I'll be the last full time farmer here.

Your farm would be in good hands if you pass it on to me!

Kovu

Oh did you ever get a ride, ever get a ride, ever get a ride on a tractor

If you hadn't gone into farming what would you have liked to do instead, here or abroad? Did you look into other things or always had an inner grá for farming and the land?

What's the most interesting thing you've seen in all your years farming, be it animal habits/land changes/unexplained happenings. Personally I love watching the suckler cow hierarchy change from year to year, I've noticed any heifer that's beat will usually end up being a b1tch of a cow to others when she gets bigger.

The Sidewards Man

How long do you give talking to other farmers after mass on Sunday?

The Backwards Man

What time do you have the dinner at?

BMMachine

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqieXSLOslo

In all seriousness though, Have you been to many farms in the UK? Is there any noticeable difference in farming techniques and culture across the pond that you are aware of?

IH784man

Are you on the farming forum on here using your own account

irishgeo

ever thought of going the organic farming route?

Is there really any difference between the steaks coming from the normal breeds vs say the premium Aberdeen angus?

whats the one thing you change about farming if you were minister for agriculture.

Comic Book Guy

Has a sales rep for a company you never dealt with eventually made a sale to you through nothing but sheer persistence/nuisance calling anytime he passes?

moleyv

I know health and safety and farm deaths are a touchy subject and clearly every farmer wants to avoid accidents.

Do you think children (pre teens) should be kept clear of the farm?

I understand those in the teens can provide a valuable working hand and it is also important if they intend on keeping the farm going down the line, but maybe lighter duty? Non machinery work.

I don't know much about the farming course that have to be taken, but is there much/enough emphasis on health and safety in these?

Maybe those that haven't done their training should be kept off the farm, or courses for teenagers could be provided by the IFA to promote safety.

Red tape requires more time and resources, so probably isn't the answer.

There is probably no straight answer to my questions, but I'm certainly interested in your perspective. I think there are increasing negative views against the farming community due to young deaths.

Kerrydude1981

Do you think Robot milkers will take off and most farms will have them in place in the next 10 to 15 years or do you think its just a mod con that will fade out due to high costs?

Also what are your thoughts on farm sharing where two or three farmers come together and join the farms and split the profits.

I'm a Farmer, AMA

Kovu wrote: »

Oh did you ever get a ride, ever get a ride, ever get a ride on a tractor
If you hadn't gone into farming what would you have liked to do instead, here or abroad? Did you look into other things or always had an inner grá for farming and the land?

What's the most interesting thing you've seen in all your years farming, be it animal habits/land changes/unexplained happenings. Personally I love watching the suckler cow hierarchy change from year to year, I've noticed any heifer that's beat will usually end up being a b1tch of a cow to others when she gets bigger.

No Kovu, never got a ride in a tractor, I did in a jeep and 305 van does that count?
Probably something in the engineering/welding/mechanical/construction line of work. The gra was always there for the land.
Watching a hare and a bunch of calves running and chasing each other, I love seeing a hawk or a buzzard or even a fox as well. No unexplained happenings, Yes the hierarchy changes, seems to run in families! Had a cow with horns who was a real bitch, sold her to a neighbour and later he said her and her daughter used to take up half a ring feeder, they de-horned the cow, and she was still as bad.:eek:

The Backwards Man wrote: »

What time do you have the dinner at?

I like to have it at 1.30PM but has been anytime from 12.30 pm to 10pm

BMMachine wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqieXSLOslo

In all seriousness though, Have you been to many farms in the UK? Is there any noticeable difference in farming techniques and culture across the pond that you are aware of?

Farms that I visited were larger, usually had staff, and were much more business orientated than us, the beef cattle were absolutely sh1te compared to ours, a lot more holstein influence than here.

irishgeo wrote: »

ever thought of going the organic farming route?

Is there really any difference between the steaks coming from the normal breeds vs say the premium Aberdeen angus?

whats the one thing you change about farming if you were minister for agriculture.

Yes have thought about it, what stops me is there isn't enough of a premium for organic beef over conventional beef, and I couldn't tell the difference. I'd also have to produce a lot less and anything that got medication is no longer organic.
There is a savage difference between meat from angus & hereford compared to continentals, aa and hereford is juicier because of the fat. Some ppl can tell where a wine is from, I'm not messing, I can tell the breed of the animal when I'm eating a steak in a restaurant, but with mince I wouldn't have a clue.

Have a cut off period for inspections eg 1st sept so payments wouldn't be delayed, any inspections during sept to december kick in the following calendar year.

No Kovu, never got a roide in a tractor, did you;)?

I'm a Farmer, AMA

Shannon757 wrote: »

What do you get it cut with?

Shannon757 wrote: »

Claas?

He has a JD, used to have New Holland

Comic Book Guy wrote: »

Has a sales rep for a company you never dealt with eventually made a sale to you through nothing but sheer persistence/nuisance calling anytime he passes?

Well I do sometimes buy NEW tools off traavelling salesmen just to get rid of them. Sales reps don't call anymore TBH without me making an enquiry first.

CaraMay

I used to work in an accountants office and often hear clients, who were farmers, blatantly reducing the level of farm profit to avoid paying taxes / to get grants etc.

Given the level of negative sentiment towards tradesmen etc doing 'nixers', do you think the youngers farmers are more upfront and treat it like a business in which taxes need to be paid or is there still an older mentality in force whereby the tax man is the enemy?