Over 300 farmers attended the Teagasc/Bord Bia farm walk held on Fergal Doyle’s suckler and sheep farm just outside Lahardane on the shores of Lough Conn in Mayo. The farm is a typical western drystock farm consisting of 25 spring-calving suckler cows and 120 ewes farmed on a part-time basis.

The event was organised by Bord Bia and Teagasc to focus on the Sustainable Beef and Lamb Quality Assurance Scheme and to explain the Origin Green concept to farmers. Topics covered included the health and safety part of the Bord Bia audit and how farmers can make their farms a safer place.

Jacinta O Neill, Teagasc adviser in Mayo, explained to farmers attending that agriculture was one of the worst-performing industries in terms of deaths in the last 10 years. “Some 210 people have been killed on Irish farms in the last 10 years, 24 of these were children and 74 were over the age of 65. It’s just not good enough,” she said.

Tom Callanan, Bord Bia inspector, gave an excellent presentation on the common mistakes that farmers make when filling in remedy purchases and usage in the Bord Bia farmer records book.

Factory criticism

While Bord Bia explained the importance of the Origin Green programme and quality assurance in gaining entry to new markets, a few farmers attending the event criticised the factories for their current “antics” in reducing beef prices over the past few weeks.

I’d like to know where financial sustainability comes in to all this because what I’m doing at the moment finishing cattle certainly isn’t financially sustainable

One farmer said: “We jump through all sorts of hoops to get cattle killed, and then Bord Bia and Larry Goodman take all the credit for getting into new markets. Can somebody please tell me when this fanfare around China is going to affect my back pocket.”

Another farmer said: “We hear a lot of about sustainability. I’d like to know where financial sustainability comes in to all this because what I’m doing at the moment finishing cattle certainly isn’t financially sustainable.”

Other events

The event is part of a series of events with further dates and venues to be announced for Donegal, south Tipperary, east Cork and Louth/Meath in August and September.