I Farm: “About four acres of artisan vegetables like cabbage and pumpkins in Balgriffin, north Dublin. It’s focused on niche and market garden type produce but I hope there is potential for expansion in the years to come.”

Pumpkins: “Pumpkins are a seasonable product. I grew about 200 pumpkin plants last year and they sold well. Gerry Ellis and Fresh Today asked me to expand, so this year I’m growing about 2,000 mostly for Hallowe’en. There aren’t that many pumpkin growers in the country and most of them are large operators. I’m about niche production and putting care into each of my plants.”

Generations: “The farm has been in the family for three generations. My grandfather was an active farmer and it was passed on to my father and my uncle. My uncle does a good bit of farming but there were no real opportunities for my father, so I’ve taken up the running of it again. I’d love to be able to expand to grow more vegetables but, at the minute, it’s about getting the growing techniques right and perfecting different varieties of what I already grow.”

Education: “I’m two years out of college. I did the Teagasc horticulture course in the Botanic Gardens which was very good but nothing beats learning in the field. That’s where you get the real experience. I’m trying my best to bring modernisation to the crops too.”

Market access: “To get my pumpkins with Fresh Today has been a huge help. I’d love to get some cabbages in with them as well but we’ll see. It’s important to be able to sell what you grow and make a future out of it and not just part-time like a lot of smaller growers.”

Quotable Quote: “When I’m buying veg, I want it to be top quality stuff, grown with care and attention. That’s the way I grow my produce. It’s all about quality — taking your time and getting it right — not just about mass production.”