I farm: "90ac between owned and rented land with my father who is retired but still helps out. I got into cows about three years ago and run a contracting business as well.”

Cows: "I have 45 cows and they are a mixture of Parthenaise, Salers and Limousins. I breed all my own replacements and try to improve the herd every year.”

Breeding: "I place a big emphasis on breeding and the quality of my cows. I use 50% AI and use a stock bull after that. I have a Salers bull which I use on the heifers and a Limousin bull for the older cows. They’re both very easy-calving bulls.”

Calving: "I calve 20 in the spring and 25 in August and September. I find this works well for both cashflow and balancing the workload. I sell all the bulls as weanlings and keep the best of the heifers with the remainder being sold as year-olds.”

Contracting: "I have four John Deere tractors on the road, 70% or 80% of my work would be bale silage. I cover west of Dingle... a radius of about 10km or 12km. I have two or three lads working with me part time. I was lucky enough this year getting drivers.”

Costs: "Everything this year has gone up, the price of making the bale is up about 30%. Wages have gone up and diesel is another issue.”

Climate: "If I have to cut my herd it’ll be a right kick in the face. We all want to make a living from farming. I think the people who want to drive on should be allowed. I think an early retirement scheme would make more sense rather than asking people to cull cows.”

Quotable quote: "Going forward I think it’s going to be more important than ever to have good quality cows because the price difference between a good quality calf and a bad one is too much.”