Offering training to members is at the heart of what Macra does and numerous opportunities are available to young farmers who want to upskill this spring.

Macra na Feirme Young Farmer Skillnet chair Gerard Griffin is passionate about being in a position to offer further training to young farmers at affordable costs. To date, members have participated in numerous young farmer seminars, welding courses, DIY AI, land mobility information sessions, first aid, pesticide training, grass measurement and cashflow management seminars with Agrinet.

Whether you are set up in your own farm business or have just completed your agricultural education and want to add to your CV, keeping up to date with new skills, technologies and policy changes is vital, as making a margin becomes more challenging.

Policy

The next series of young farmer information meetings will give updates on policy and schemes and will include a discussion on the effect of measures to deal with climate change. These meetings will take place on 14 April in Abbeyleix Manor and 28 April in The Landmark Hotel, Carrick-on-Shannon.

Farm safety risk assessment courses are being held in three venues nationwide and delivered by Teagasc. A series of one-day safe tractor driving courses are being held and, as you can see, the emphasis is being placed on safety as this is a busy period on farms using a lot of machinery.

Farm business planning is something young farmers have to be clued in to and a two-day short course, which sees Macra’s Skillnet team up with IFAC, asks participants to look at their budgeting and financial planning, understand farm taxation and what motivates decisions.

Breeding season

With the breeding season fast approaching, Macra na Feirme’s Young Farmer Skillnet has placed a special focus on delivering AI training to young farmer members.

With four courses completed to date this year in association with Dúnmasc Genetics and two more courses scheduled for April, one in the midlands/west and another in the south, the course is proving to be in real demand by young farmers starting out in business. It has never been as important to keep your knowledge and skills up to date.

For young farmers to develop viable businesses into the future, they have to embrace career-long learning to ensure that they stay profitable and safe on their farm.

Booking for all courses is available on http://macraskillnet.eventbrite.ie. Training is highly subsidised to members of Macra aged 17 to 40 involved in agriculture.