Grazing is still going well here in Abbeyleix, despite the very wet spell over the past few weeks, with 160mm of rain recorded in the last month.

Ground conditions are holding up surprisingly well considering the rainfall. We brought the cows in at night two weeks ago, before the worst of the rain hit. I’ve reduced meal feeding to 4kg, with no silage offered during the day. Graze-outs have been excellent, so the system seems to be working well.

Cows are receiving silage at night, and I’ve stopped feeding the high-quality bales for now, to save them for spring. We’re currently feeding second-cut pit silage while awaiting the feed test results. Our average farm cover (AFC) has held around 925kg DM/ha for the last few weeks, with growth staying steady at 25kg DM/ha.

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Pre-grazing covers are running between 1,700 and 1,800kg DM/ha. By 4 November we had 70% grazed, right on target. There are around 10 days of grazing left, and I expect the average farm cover (AFC) to be about 800kg DM/ha when we finish.

Two paddocks that were originally in the autumn rotation plan won’t be grazed, as doing so would drop the AFC below 700kg DM/ha – too low for my liking. I’m aiming for a closing cover of at least 850kg DM/ha on 1 December.

Cows are currently averaging 16l at 5.50% butterfat and 4.40% protein, with somatic cell count (SCC) around 120,000. A few weeks ago, we dried off eight empty cull cows with high SCC and lameness issues, which should help keep the SCC under control. They’re now on slats, getting pit silage and 3kg of meal. We also dried off the first of the early-calving first-lactation cows last week, to give them a full 12-week dry period – they will get hay for a week to dry up fully. All cows receive a worm dose down the neck and a pour-on for lice at drying off.

The in-calf heifers were moved to the other silage block two weeks ago, with the hope of getting three to four weeks’ grazing. Unfortunately, the weather turned too wet, so they were brought home this week. They’re now settled in on cubicles for the winter, with tails trimmed and dosed for worms and a pour-on for lice.

I travelled down to Corrin Mart during the week to attend the IFA’s national nitrates derogation meeting with Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon. The mart was packed to the rafters, with farmers from every corner of the country clearly anxious about what lies ahead. The mood was serious but respectful, and it was obvious that people had come looking for answers rather than speeches.

Minister Heydon outlined the Government’s ongoing engagement with the European Commission and spoke about the importance of maintaining our derogation, but many in the crowd felt that time is running out and that too little progress has been made.

Several farmers stood up to share how the proposed cut in the nitrates limit would directly affect their herds, their incomes and the viability of their family farms. I could relate all too well – like many others, we have worked hard to build up our herd sustainably, and the idea of being forced to cut numbers or lease extra land at inflated prices is deeply worrying. There was strong agreement in the room that farmers are committed to improving water quality, but that any changes must be practical, science-based, and fair.

Despite the frustration, there was a real sense of solidarity – of farmers standing together for the future of Irish agriculture. As I drove back to Laois that night, I couldn’t help but think that meetings like this matter. They give farmers a voice, and that voice needs to be heard clearly in Dublin and Brussels before irreversible damage is done to the very fabric of rural Ireland. Minister Heydon heard a clear and united message from the floor – that losing the derogation is simply not an option for Irish farmers.