Not many farmers can say they have a power station on one side of them and a ferry terminal on the other, but Sean Culligan can. The Clare man is farming next to Moneypoint power station. He bought 50ac across the road a few years ago, which has allowed him to double cow numbers. The little village of Killimer with its ferry terminal is to the other side of the farm. It’s on this ferry that the milk lorry comes.
Produced off grass in Clare and moved by land and sea, his milk ends up in Kerry to be processed into the dairy products that feed the world.
Like many farmers in the region, Sean describes himself as being a mixed farmer. He rears cattle on an out-farm and milks 70 cows on the home farm. He breeds the cows to Friesian for three weeks to get enough replacement heifers, before letting out a Hereford and a Limousin bull to get beef calves.
ADVERTISEMENT
“The out-farm is five or six miles away. I sell half the cattle as stores in October and finish the other half. There’s not a whole lot of money on the beef side of things but they keep the grass eaten and when they’re sold they do bring in money at a time of year that the milk cheques are low. You could nearly say it’s a forced savings scheme,” Sean says.
Despite operating out of two yards, Sean has no hired help other than family. Sons Diarmuid and Liam are “stone mad” about farming. Sean has invested in technology and facilities to make the farm run smoother with a Dairymaster parlour and a Volac calf feeder.
Register for free to read this story and our free stories.
This content is available to digital subscribers and loyalty code users only. Sign in to your account, use the code or subscribe to get unlimited access.
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
CODE ACCEPTED
You have full access to the site until next Wednesday at 9pm.
CODE NOT VALID
Please try again or contact support.
Not many farmers can say they have a power station on one side of them and a ferry terminal on the other, but Sean Culligan can. The Clare man is farming next to Moneypoint power station. He bought 50ac across the road a few years ago, which has allowed him to double cow numbers. The little village of Killimer with its ferry terminal is to the other side of the farm. It’s on this ferry that the milk lorry comes.
Produced off grass in Clare and moved by land and sea, his milk ends up in Kerry to be processed into the dairy products that feed the world.
Like many farmers in the region, Sean describes himself as being a mixed farmer. He rears cattle on an out-farm and milks 70 cows on the home farm. He breeds the cows to Friesian for three weeks to get enough replacement heifers, before letting out a Hereford and a Limousin bull to get beef calves.
“The out-farm is five or six miles away. I sell half the cattle as stores in October and finish the other half. There’s not a whole lot of money on the beef side of things but they keep the grass eaten and when they’re sold they do bring in money at a time of year that the milk cheques are low. You could nearly say it’s a forced savings scheme,” Sean says.
Despite operating out of two yards, Sean has no hired help other than family. Sons Diarmuid and Liam are “stone mad” about farming. Sean has invested in technology and facilities to make the farm run smoother with a Dairymaster parlour and a Volac calf feeder.
If you would like to speak to a member of our team, please call us on 01-4199525.
Link sent to your email address
We have sent an email to your address. Please click on the link in this email to reset your password. If you can't find it in your inbox, please check your spam folder. If you can't find the email, please call us on 01-4199525.
ENTER YOUR LOYALTY CODE:
The reader loyalty code gives you full access to the site from when you enter it until the following Wednesday at 9pm. Find your unique code on the back page of Irish Country Living every week.
SHARING OPTIONS