Tara Foley, 11, of Cuas, Co Kerry, with her sheep dog 'Knockmaa Zweep', was the youngest winner of the Munster Nursery Final, Sheep Dog Trials, Farmers Class at Kilgobnet last Sunday. Photo: Valerie O'Sullivan
New IFA President Joe Healy from Galway makes his first speech as president, at the IFA Presidential Elections in the Castleknock Hotel In Dublin. PIcture: Finbarr O'Rourke NO FEE
Joe Healy is pictured at the IFA Election Debate in Mallow, Co. Cork with his wife Margaret and children Nocole, Kiara and Anna. Photo: Donal O' Leary
Ciaran Rafferty,Greenore,Co.Louth cutting hedges at Cross Allaney,Greenore.
29th October, 2016.A third consignment of live cattle destined for Turkey is to leave Ireland today on the Philippines’ registered Brahman Express pictured here at Greenore Port, County Louth.
.Photo: BARRY CRONIN/www.barrycronin.com.
Phone: 046-9055044/087-9598549 - info@barrycronin.com
Cattle rustling in Co Monaghan. Effected farmers. Shed with lock and cctv. Bales blocking off intruders.
Larry Goodman, AIBP At the 2011 NPA Championships at Athy
Patrick Donohoe, Valerie O'Sullivan, Pat O'Toole, Mary Phelan and Peter Varley of the Irish Farmers Journal with their Guild of Agricultural Journalism awards (Photo: Johnny Bambury)
The biggest farm that sold was the 310-acre estate at New Hall House, Ennis, Co Clare, which made €1.7m. It came with an 18th century mansion, four gate lodges and a courtyard.
B is for Brexit.
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The full impact of the UK’s vote to leave the EU on the Irish agri-food industry is as yet unknown but a hard Brexit could cost Irish agriculture €1bn according to economist Jim Power.
C is for CCTV.
Farmers were shocked to discover that web-based CCTV cameras in sheds, yards and calving units in Ireland were being broadcast to all and sundry on the internet. Default passwords left the cameras vulnerable to hacking.
D is for Dairy.
Dairy farmers had a tough 2016, with prices starting in January of 23c/litre to 24c/l and climbing to 27c/l as we look to the new year. There is hope that 2017 will be much improved due to a substantial drop in EU milk supplies and a fall in New Zealand production.
Listen to a review of 2016 with Irish Farmers Journal livestock specialists in our podcast below:
Live cattle exportse for 2016 are expected to be down by 20% to 25% compared with the 2015 figure of 171,655. Exports to Northern Ireland and Britain fell by 32,000 head, while exports to Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and France all fell by 24% to 38%. The freefall was only alleviated by the opening up of market for weanling bulls in Turkey.
F is for Fatalities.
Sadly 20 people lost their lives in farm accidents this year. Farming continues to be the most dangerous sector to work in and you are eight times more likely to die working on a farm in Ireland than in the general working population.
G is for GLAS.
Farmers clamoured to get applications in on time for the Green Low-Carbon Agri-Environment Scheme or GLAS. The race was on to secure places in Tier 1 and avail of as much of the €5,000 maximum payment as possible. GLAS III was oversubscribed by as many as 3,000 applicants.
H is for Healy.
Joe Healy was elected the new IFA president on 19 April, securing 50% of the national vote and defeating livestock chairman Henry Burns (30%) and Flor McCarthy (19%). The Athenry farmer was seen as a new broom the association needed following a turbulent period that saw the exit of director general Pat Smith and resignation of president Eddie Downey.
I is for Inspection.
Around 6,500 farms were selected for satellite inspections this year, with full BPS payments delayed to those farmers until the remote satellite or follow-up farm inspections were complete.
J is for Joint Venture.
Slaney Foods, a joint venture between the Allen family and Linden Foods hit the headlines throughout 2016. Larry Goodman’s ABP purchased Bert Allen’s share of Slaney, a move that gave him control of 30% of the national cattle kill and 40% of the country’s lamb kill. Despite strenuous objections from farmers, the deal was ultimately given the green light by the European Commission.
K is for Kerry.
Farmers in the Kingdom commenced a battle against the Revenue Commissioners on the issue of patronage shares issued by Kerry Co-op in December. They face potential tax bills of €5,000 to €50,000 unless Revenue backs down.
L is for Levy.
The ICBF revealed in December that it lost out on €790,000 when farmers opted not to pay the levy of 38c/tag when buying their 2017 calf tags. The move could effectively end the 16-year voluntary funding model that has yielded €500m in benefits to Irish cattle breeding.
M is for Medal.
Former Glanbia boss John Moloney received the 2016 RDS Gold Medal for Enterprise.
N is for No Change.
No hedge-cutting dates yet, despite legislation being introduced last January that proposed a relaxation of the ban on hedge-cutting in August and on vegetation burning in March.
O is for Ornua
Who opened a new €38m butter and packaging facility opened a new €38m butter and packaging facility in Mitchelstown in Co Cork. Kerrygold Park will employ 65 people and produce 50,000t of butter per year.
P is for Pay.
The IFA’s new director general Damian McDonald will take up his position in January on a salary of €185,350 and pension of €27,750. This is some way below the €295,000 basic salary, €150,000 pension and €90,000 bonus and fees received by former secretary general Pat Smith in 2013. The association revealed that the top three positions of secretary, director of organisation and financial controller in IFA were paid a total of €591,651, including pension, last year.
Q is for Quartet.
The Irish Farmers Journal won four awards at the Guild of Agricultural Journalists Awards 2016. The team won the best print news article accolade for its coverage of the IFA pay crisis, best technical article for Peter Varley’s On & Off Farm series, best targeted campaign for Mary Phelan’s Agri Careers Fair and the best photograph for Valerie O’Sullivan’s image One Girl and Her Dog.
R is for Rustling. Cattle thefts fell by 40% this year. According to Department of Agriculture figures, 125 cattle were stolen in 2016 compared with 209 cattle last year. Cattle rustling has been most prevalent in Co Monaghan this year, with 41 animals stolen to date.
S is for Skinning.
Malting barley growers were left reeling as up to 100% of their crop was rejected for malting due to skinning in 2016. With no single definitive reason yet identified for the weakening of husks, farmers will be hoping that the issue does not rear its head again in 2017.
T is for Tractors.
Sales of new tractors in Ireland remained steady in 2016, with the end of year tally likely to be around 1,880 tractors. Tractor sales in Galway, Mayo, Roscommon and Leitrim are up by 24-36% compared with 2015, while the biggest tractor ever in Ireland arrived at the Ploughing Championships in Co Offaly. The Fendt 1050 delivers an impressive 500hp.
U is for US. The land of the free and home of the brave was the talk of the world as Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the race to the White House. The effect of his protectionist ideals on the global agriculture trade remain to be seen.
V is for Video.
With almost 38,000 views, the most popular video on farmersjournal.ie in 2016 is of a beef finishing masterclass at the Bourns family’s Lisbeg Farms in Eyrecourt, Co Galway. The 1,400ac farm includes 460ac of tillage, 640ac of grassland and 300ac of forestry, running 1,500 cattle, 1,500 ewes and 90 horses.
W is for Water.
Water charges, flooding and water supplies all hit the headlines throughout 2016. The Shannon is set to be dredged in an effort to remove 100 years’ worth of silt, while Irish Water announced its plans for a 170km pipeline to bring water from the River Shannon to Dublin through 500 landholdings in Tipperary, Offaly, Kildare and Dublin.
X is for X7.650
Efficient, the latest offering from McCormick and one of the many machines test-driven by the Irish Farmers Journal team this year. Follow @FJMachinery on Twitter to stay up to speed with their features.
Y is for Young farmers.
Macra na Feirme appointed a new chief executive officer, Tipperary man Denis Duggan, in October and will have a presidential election in 2017.
Z is for (New) Zealand.
The country was rocked by a 7.5-magnitude earthquake in November near Christchurch and Wellington. Dairy farmers cut off by damaged roads were forced to spill up to 200,000 litres of milk per day. One of the abiding images of the quake was of three cattle marooned on a tiny island 20ft up in the air after all the surrounding land fell away. They were rescued when farmers and others dug a trackway to allow the animals walk to safety.
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A is for Acres.
The biggest farm that sold was the 310-acre estate at New Hall House, Ennis, Co Clare, which made €1.7m. It came with an 18th century mansion, four gate lodges and a courtyard.
B is for Brexit.
The full impact of the UK’s vote to leave the EU on the Irish agri-food industry is as yet unknown but a hard Brexit could cost Irish agriculture €1bn according to economist Jim Power.
C is for CCTV.
Farmers were shocked to discover that web-based CCTV cameras in sheds, yards and calving units in Ireland were being broadcast to all and sundry on the internet. Default passwords left the cameras vulnerable to hacking.
D is for Dairy.
Dairy farmers had a tough 2016, with prices starting in January of 23c/litre to 24c/l and climbing to 27c/l as we look to the new year. There is hope that 2017 will be much improved due to a substantial drop in EU milk supplies and a fall in New Zealand production.
Listen to a review of 2016 with Irish Farmers Journal livestock specialists in our podcast below:
Live cattle exportse for 2016 are expected to be down by 20% to 25% compared with the 2015 figure of 171,655. Exports to Northern Ireland and Britain fell by 32,000 head, while exports to Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and France all fell by 24% to 38%. The freefall was only alleviated by the opening up of market for weanling bulls in Turkey.
F is for Fatalities.
Sadly 20 people lost their lives in farm accidents this year. Farming continues to be the most dangerous sector to work in and you are eight times more likely to die working on a farm in Ireland than in the general working population.
G is for GLAS.
Farmers clamoured to get applications in on time for the Green Low-Carbon Agri-Environment Scheme or GLAS. The race was on to secure places in Tier 1 and avail of as much of the €5,000 maximum payment as possible. GLAS III was oversubscribed by as many as 3,000 applicants.
H is for Healy.
Joe Healy was elected the new IFA president on 19 April, securing 50% of the national vote and defeating livestock chairman Henry Burns (30%) and Flor McCarthy (19%). The Athenry farmer was seen as a new broom the association needed following a turbulent period that saw the exit of director general Pat Smith and resignation of president Eddie Downey.
I is for Inspection.
Around 6,500 farms were selected for satellite inspections this year, with full BPS payments delayed to those farmers until the remote satellite or follow-up farm inspections were complete.
J is for Joint Venture.
Slaney Foods, a joint venture between the Allen family and Linden Foods hit the headlines throughout 2016. Larry Goodman’s ABP purchased Bert Allen’s share of Slaney, a move that gave him control of 30% of the national cattle kill and 40% of the country’s lamb kill. Despite strenuous objections from farmers, the deal was ultimately given the green light by the European Commission.
K is for Kerry.
Farmers in the Kingdom commenced a battle against the Revenue Commissioners on the issue of patronage shares issued by Kerry Co-op in December. They face potential tax bills of €5,000 to €50,000 unless Revenue backs down.
L is for Levy.
The ICBF revealed in December that it lost out on €790,000 when farmers opted not to pay the levy of 38c/tag when buying their 2017 calf tags. The move could effectively end the 16-year voluntary funding model that has yielded €500m in benefits to Irish cattle breeding.
M is for Medal.
Former Glanbia boss John Moloney received the 2016 RDS Gold Medal for Enterprise.
N is for No Change.
No hedge-cutting dates yet, despite legislation being introduced last January that proposed a relaxation of the ban on hedge-cutting in August and on vegetation burning in March.
O is for Ornua
Who opened a new €38m butter and packaging facility opened a new €38m butter and packaging facility in Mitchelstown in Co Cork. Kerrygold Park will employ 65 people and produce 50,000t of butter per year.
P is for Pay.
The IFA’s new director general Damian McDonald will take up his position in January on a salary of €185,350 and pension of €27,750. This is some way below the €295,000 basic salary, €150,000 pension and €90,000 bonus and fees received by former secretary general Pat Smith in 2013. The association revealed that the top three positions of secretary, director of organisation and financial controller in IFA were paid a total of €591,651, including pension, last year.
Q is for Quartet.
The Irish Farmers Journal won four awards at the Guild of Agricultural Journalists Awards 2016. The team won the best print news article accolade for its coverage of the IFA pay crisis, best technical article for Peter Varley’s On & Off Farm series, best targeted campaign for Mary Phelan’s Agri Careers Fair and the best photograph for Valerie O’Sullivan’s image One Girl and Her Dog.
R is for Rustling. Cattle thefts fell by 40% this year. According to Department of Agriculture figures, 125 cattle were stolen in 2016 compared with 209 cattle last year. Cattle rustling has been most prevalent in Co Monaghan this year, with 41 animals stolen to date.
S is for Skinning.
Malting barley growers were left reeling as up to 100% of their crop was rejected for malting due to skinning in 2016. With no single definitive reason yet identified for the weakening of husks, farmers will be hoping that the issue does not rear its head again in 2017.
T is for Tractors.
Sales of new tractors in Ireland remained steady in 2016, with the end of year tally likely to be around 1,880 tractors. Tractor sales in Galway, Mayo, Roscommon and Leitrim are up by 24-36% compared with 2015, while the biggest tractor ever in Ireland arrived at the Ploughing Championships in Co Offaly. The Fendt 1050 delivers an impressive 500hp.
U is for US. The land of the free and home of the brave was the talk of the world as Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the race to the White House. The effect of his protectionist ideals on the global agriculture trade remain to be seen.
V is for Video.
With almost 38,000 views, the most popular video on farmersjournal.ie in 2016 is of a beef finishing masterclass at the Bourns family’s Lisbeg Farms in Eyrecourt, Co Galway. The 1,400ac farm includes 460ac of tillage, 640ac of grassland and 300ac of forestry, running 1,500 cattle, 1,500 ewes and 90 horses.
W is for Water.
Water charges, flooding and water supplies all hit the headlines throughout 2016. The Shannon is set to be dredged in an effort to remove 100 years’ worth of silt, while Irish Water announced its plans for a 170km pipeline to bring water from the River Shannon to Dublin through 500 landholdings in Tipperary, Offaly, Kildare and Dublin.
X is for X7.650
Efficient, the latest offering from McCormick and one of the many machines test-driven by the Irish Farmers Journal team this year. Follow @FJMachinery on Twitter to stay up to speed with their features.
Y is for Young farmers.
Macra na Feirme appointed a new chief executive officer, Tipperary man Denis Duggan, in October and will have a presidential election in 2017.
Z is for (New) Zealand.
The country was rocked by a 7.5-magnitude earthquake in November near Christchurch and Wellington. Dairy farmers cut off by damaged roads were forced to spill up to 200,000 litres of milk per day. One of the abiding images of the quake was of three cattle marooned on a tiny island 20ft up in the air after all the surrounding land fell away. They were rescued when farmers and others dug a trackway to allow the animals walk to safety.
If you would like to speak to a member of our team, please call us on 01-4199525.
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