The annual IGA Dairy Conference sponsored by Yara has been rescheduled to the 14th of January in the Charleville Park Hotel. We have an exciting line up of speakers for this year’s conference, addressing key issues affecting dairy farmers. The title for this year’s conference is ‘Can you make profit easier’, with the various sessions addressing farm profit-ability and more efficient work practices. Eva Ross from Yara said “We are proud to be a long-standing supporter of the Dairy Conference as productivity and sustainability continues to be a fine balancing act during a time of squeezed margins and environmental challenges.”
Session 1: Foundation for profitable dairy farming
In this first session Laurance Shalloo from Teagasc will set the scene for the dairy industry outlining the challenges that exist in relation to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improv-ing water quality, enhancing biodiversity on farms while at the same time improving the living standards of practicing farmers. Cork dairy farmer Joe Deane will join Laurence for a panel discussion with Chair Jack Kennedy where he will discuss the current and future chal-lenges for his business.
Laurence Shalloo qualified from UCD with a BAgrSc in1999, and he went on to complete his PhD in 2004 on the development and use of the Moorepark Dairy Systems Model to ana-lyse institutional and technical changes in dairy farming. He joined Teagasc in 2004 and was appointed the Head of Animal and Grassland Programme in 2022. He is Deputy Director of the SFI/DAFM-funded VistaMilk Research Centre and is an Adjunct Professor at UCC. Lau-rence has set ambitious targets for the next 5 years, to increasing the sustainability of Irish livestock production systems. Challenges exist in relation to reducing greenhouse gas emis-sions, improving water quality, enhancing biodiversity on farms while at the same time im-proving the living standards of practicing farmers. These challenges will be best addressed through optimising Ireland’s advantage in grass-based systems of animal production.
Joe Deane is originally from a 50 acre drystock farm in Trabolgan, East Cork. Joe and is wife Laoise live in Carrigaline, Cork, with their two kids Jack 5, and Michael 3. They are farming two leased dairy farms in the Carrigaline area and one in the Carrigtwohill area. Unit 1 has been leased since 2017 and the lease is up at end of this year, so he is actively looking for a replacement for that presently. Unit 2 in Carrigaline is in year 5 of an 11-year lease. Unit 3 in Carrigtwohill is in year 2 of a 10-year lease. They milked 470 cows in total across the 3 farms in 2024. Labour is one full time staff member on each unit plus relief. The farm manager on the Carrigtwohill farm has stock leased into the business. All machinery work is contracted out. R1’s are contract reared mainly and R2’s are reared on his home farm. There is a strong emphasis on clover swards across all units.
Session 2: More grass better cows
Teagasc dairy advisor John McCabe will begin this session presenting a paper detailing the key attributes that underpin a profitable dairy farm, examining the impact that lower grass growth had on dairy farms in 2024 and what can be learned from this experience. Margaret Kelleher of ICBF will then present a paper on the value of improving the genetic potential of dairy herds and importantly how it can be achieved.
John McCabe is from Co. Cavan. He qualified from UCD with a BAgrSc in 2015. In 2016/17 he broadened his experience of pasture-based dairying by working in the UK and New Zealand. He started his career in Teagasc in 2017 before spending 4 years as a facilita-tor on the Teagasc-Dairygold joint programme, where he co-facilitated 24 discussion groups in North Munster. Together with his colleagues, he now delivers the Teagasc – Aurivo Farm Profitability Programme covering the province of Connaught, Co. Donegal and Co. West-meath. He has a keen interest in driving higher profitability through improvements in the growth and utilisation of pasture, silage quality and dairy cow genetics. Alongside promot-ing strong technical and financial performance, he focuses much of his efforts on helping farmers achieve a reduction in workload and a greater work/life balance.
Magaret Kelleher: Margaret works as the Genetics Operations Manager at the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF), leading a team of geneticists to deliver national and interna-tional genetic evaluations for the dairy and beef industry. She has been working with the ICBF as a quantitative geneticist for 10 years, running genetic evaluations, developing inno-vative decision support tools, and conducting in-depth analyses to investigate genetic poten-tial in areas such as female fertility, sexed semen, linear type, and dairy-beef merit. In 2015, Margaret completed her PhD at Teagasc Moorepark, where her research resulted in the crea-tion of the C.O.W. (Cow’s Own Worth) Index, a widely-used culling tool for dairy cows. Margaret, who comes from a dairy farming background in Cork, and her husband Brendan, are farming in Cashel, Co. Tipperary, milking 200 high EBI cows under a long-term lease.
Session 3: Switched on for spring
The final session will focus on helping farmers manage the spring workload more effective-ly. Conor Hogan a labour management specialist with Teagasc will present his research on this topic and afterwards dairy farmers Maeve O’Keeffe and Jack Kearney will talk through how each of them mange and organise their farms during this busy period.
Conor Hogan is from a farming background, and he currently manages the Teagasc People in Dairy Programme. He graduated in 2018 with a Dairy Business degree from UCD, before completing a PhD in dairy farm labour management and productivity in collaboration be-tween Teagasc Moorepark and UCD. In his current role, Conor’s research focuses on farm workplaces, in terms of how they can be made more attractive and sustainable for both cur-rent and prospective farmers and farm operatives. Conor will discuss how increasing our understanding of the springtime workload, can result in reduced work hours, and can have associated positive effects on many aspects of dairy farming; including the health and safety of farm operators, reduced stress and fatigue among farmers creating more attractive work-places, and improving farm profitability.
Jack Kearney is farming in Rathcormac in Cork in partnership with his parents Larry & An-nette. They are farming 78 Ha of which 44 Ha is owned. Jack came straight home after agri-cultural college in 2015. He was Young Dairy Farmer of the Year 2023. After nearly a dec-ade of hard work and strong planning, the Kearney farm is now a great example for the whole industry for how an intensive family-owned dairy farm can be both financially and environmentally sustainable while providing a good quality of life for both generations. The Kearney’s milked 160 cows in 2024 and with additional land coming on stream they are planning to milk 230 in 2025. Jack will discuss how they effectively plan and manage the spring workload and what adaptations they see necessary for Spring 2025.
Maeve O’Keeffe is a sixth-generation dairy farmer from Ballynoe in East Cork. Meave is married to Ed, and they have two daughters. Maeve completed a Nuffield scholarship in 2016, investigating lameness in dairy cows. Ed and Meave manage a 320-cow spring calving herd across two separate milking platforms. Meave is also the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Hoof Care Direct. Hoof Care Direct is a family run business based in East Cork that sells hoof care products and they manufacture and sell the Inspect4 Rollover crates on farm. During a panel discussion Maeve will outline how they organise and manage people during this busy spring period and the preparation necessary to ensure that the farm runs as smoothly as possible to reduce stress and fatigue, and ensure the health and safety of farm operators.
Conclusion
This should be an informative and insightful day for attendees with ample time for attendees to engage with the speakers. To avoid disappointment, secure your tickets early for this event by booking your tickets online at www.irishgrassland.ie .
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