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The farm: “I farm 550 hill ewes and a suckler herd of 50 cows on a 170ha grassland unit at Fairhead near Ballycastle, Co Antrim. Land is mostly owned, with the exception of 10ha, which is rented annually for silage and grazing. Our farm is located at the most northerly point of Northern Ireland. Land is mostly classed as LFA or SDA, with only 128ha eligible for BPS. Soil type is relatively light, but fields are steep, which limits them to grazing.”
Family farm: “I am married to Róisín and we have three sons and one daughter. My son Gerard farms on a full-time basis alongside me.”
Suckler herd: “Our cows calve from February to April and herd fertility is good. Calving index this spring was 361 days. Cows are a mix of Limousin, Blue, Angus and Hereford. We run two stock bulls, one Charolais and one Limousin. Calves are sold through special weanling sales in October and November. I am hopeful that early payment of BPS and plenty of silage will result in a good trade for weanlings this autumn.”
Selling breeding sheep: “Our ewes are a mix of Texel-cross Mules and Lanark-type Scottish Blackface. Last weekend we sold 300 ewe lambs through special breeding sales. Lambs were either Mules, or Texel and Suffolk-cross Mules. They averaged £88 (€97), which I am pleased with.”
Game of Thrones: “We were fortunate enough to have Game of Thrones film on our farm back in autumn 2016. The show took over the farm for six days and it was a fantastic experience meeting the cast and crew.”
Tourism: “The farm has slowly diversified into tourism and the business is gradually growing. As we are on the coast, Fairhead is recognised as one of the best rock climbing locations in the UK and we have welcomed visitors from all over the world. We also have installed walking trails, which are getting more and more popular. The plan is to develop a campsite and possibly convert a restored barn into a coffee shop.”
Favourite quote: “We like what we do, but being in a hill environment we are constantly looking at the best way to make the farm pay.”
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