FTMTA AGM

The 2014 Farm Tractor & Machinery Trade Association AGM will take place at 4pm on Thursday 17 July at the FTMTA offices near Naas. Further details, including the agenda and associated material, were issued to member firms in recent days. This will be the 48th agm of the association.

MooMonitor a global leader

A research study undertaken at Kansas State University and published recently in the Journal of Dairy Science confirms the MooMonitor heat detection system from FTMTA member firm, Dairymaster, as the best automated system of its kind worldwide. The study specifically stated that scanning by ultrasonography confirmed that 88.6% of cows identified by activity (by the MooMonitor) were in estrus. This compared favourably with other systems tested which were 70% to 80% accurate.

What the research showed was that the majority of heats happen during the night and that there was a real difference in the gap between the onset of heat and conception time, depending on the age of the animal and the number of previous pregnancies.

In addition to detecting cows in heat, optimising the timing of insemination can significantly improve conception rates with less effort and greater efficiency, meaning cows are more productive. “Obviously, this has major implications for productivity,” says Dr Edmond Harty, CEO of Dairymaster. “If farmers are able to correctly identify the cows needing to be impregnated, they gain back the €250 per missed heat they would lose. And, of course, with the MooMonitor, that can all be done without losing a wink’s sleep.”

FTMTA Farm Machinery Show

Early preparations are already underway for Ireland’s premier farm machinery event, the biennial FTMTA Farm Machinery Show. The show will return to Punchestown near Naas on 5, 6 and 7 February and will continue the Thursday, Friday and Saturday format which was introduced in 2011 and which has proved successful. The FTMTA Farm Machinery Show is Ireland’s largest dedicated farm machinery event and is also the largest indoor agricultural event in Ireland, attracting 18,000 visitors in 2013.