Farmers in Northern Ireland, fed up with a recent spate of rural crime, have been using their initiative.

In a case before Christmas, a farmer who had cattle stolen managed to find the cattle standing in a local abattoir a couple of days later. The man who presented the cattle was arrested and is currently out on bail.

And within the past week a farmer who had his tractor and slurry tanker stolen located his tractor along with a second stolen machine at an isolated farmyard about 20 miles away. He decided to do a stake-out. Twenty-four hours later a car pulled up and out jumped a young man who was obviously going to move one of the machines. The farmer managed to perform a citizen’s arrest.

In a separate incident in Fermanagh, a group of farmers foiled what would appear to have been an attempt at cattle rustling.

The farmers spotted a strange cattle truck in the area. After tailing it for some time, they saw that it had pulled into a farmer’s yard and cattle were being divided into different pens in order to steal the best ones.

After confirming their suspicions that the operators were up to no good, the diligent neighbours blocked the truck into a yard.

While the police rightly warn against taking the law into your hands, the Dealer can’t help but commend the initiative shown.

Minister Coveney thanks John Bryan

At the IFA AGM dinner in the Red Cow Hotel on Tuesday evening, Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney paid tribute to outgoing IFA president John Bryan for his dedication to protecting the interests of Irish farmers. “I might not have always thanked you for bringing 400 farmers to my home town,” the Minister joked, referring to a high-profile protest in Carrigaline. “Although, the shopkeepers in town were glad to see you,” Coveney added. New IFA president was quick to respond: “Minister, I’m glad you noticed that when farmers come to town, they spend!”