A new six-part series focusing on innovation in farming begins tonight on TG4.

Feirm will look at the future of farming in different sectors each week, beginning with the dairy sector tonight. The programmes are in both Irish and English and will feature experts and farmers from all areas of farming, according to Paschal Cassidy of Red Shoe Productions who has produced the programme with the help funding from the BAI.

Paschal told the Irish Farmers Journal the inspiration for the documentary-style series, which has been a year in the making, came from an hunger in Ireland for agricultural-based programmes.

Feirm is presented by former olympian turned dairy farmer Jamie Costin. Costin took over his family dairy farm in An Rinn, Co Waterford in recent years, milking 180 cows.

In tonight's programme, Jamie tells his own story of how he got into dairy farming, as the programme follow's Jamie's milk from cow to Glanbia. Pat Ryan, a dairy farmer in Co Waterford also features. Pat was one of the first farmers to form a partnership with three other local farmers ten years ago and has re-bred his cows to suit his land type.

Although the series focuses on the more positive aspects of farming, looking at innovation, later on in the series, the beef episode highlights the struggling beef sector, meeting beef farmers who have switched to forestry.

The programme is on tonight and every Thursday for the next six weeks at 8pm on TG4 and will be repeated later in the week.