Sean O’Donnell, a dairy farmer from Ballina in Co Mayo, says one of the highlights of his year after being named the 2014 FBD Young Farmer of the Year last September was the number of business opportunities that presented themselves in the months following the announcement.

“That’s really one of the main things that stands out on the back of the win,” he says to farmersjournal.ie. “It helps raise your profile and open doors because people know who you are. The advice I would give to next year’s winner is to be open to everything that comes your way because you never know where it will lead.”

The Mayo farmer emerged from a very strong shortlist to win the Macra na Feirme-organised competition in Bantry last year. Tuesday, 1 September 2015, will see this year’s winner being announced in the Twin Trees Hotel, Ballina, Co Mayo – O’Donnell’s home turf.

After the seven-year lease on his parents’ farm ran out shortly after the win, the dairy farm was transferred into the young O’Donnell’s name. Sean lives on the farm with his wife Jackie and three boys. It currently has 110 cows but the resources are there to bring that number up to 130 some time next year.

It has been a busy year for O’Donnell, with requests for attendance at public speaking events coming in thick and fast. “I’ve probably attended up to 30 events over the course of the year,” he tells us, “especially around the time dairy quotas were abolished in April.”

That historic date for dairy farmers saw O’Donnell do a televised interview for the RTÉ Six One news followed by one for the Nine One.

“That was quite high-profile,” he says, “but there have been others as well like speaking at the Ploughing and more recently the Virginia Show in Co Cavan. You’re certainly forced to get over any qualms about public speaking and being in the spotlight.”

And he can’t let out a sigh of relief just yet. O’Donnell will be hosting approximately 50 people at a walk on the home farm tomorrow before the announcement of the 2015 winner.

And although he is slightly nostalgic over the passing on of his title on Tuesday, he has nothing but good wishes for this year’s winner.

“The best of luck to them,” he says. “The winner will make so many new contacts out of it and the benefits of that might not become apparent immediately but it may result in something happening two or three years down the line.”

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2015 FBD Young Farmer of the Year to be announced