Farmers in north Mayo need to reconnect with their local communities to chart a viable future for their small holdings, Justin Sammon maintains.
The CEO of Mayo North East LEADER is also adamant that farmers continuing to farm as they have done over the last four or five decades - concentrating almost exclusively on producing store lambs and hoggets or continental weanlings – is not sustainable long term.
Sammon believes that farmers need to look at older systems that are less intensive but potentially more profitable; essentially, looking to the past to map a way forward.
They also need to assess the local market opportunities for growing the likes of the Emmer wheat, or producing Maol cattle and traditional Cladóir sheep, he said.
Westport-based bakery owner Karen O’Donoghue agrees.
Her firm Happy Tummy is a major user of stone ground Emmer wheat, most of which is grown in Ireland, in its breads and other products.
Some of the Emmer wheat harvested at Mayo College, Westport.
However, the firm is currently importing Emmer flour from Northumberland – which O’Donoghue points out has a similar wet and windy climate to Mayo - because Irish stocks are not available.
More growers
“If there were more farmers across Ireland growing Emmer wheat we’d use it, and we’d be in a position to push it,” O’Donoghue said. “What we require is a grain with high fibre and nutrient content. Protein content isn’t a very important issue for us,” she added.
Happy Tummy has 11,500 customers across Britain and Ireland who are “obsessed” with the health benefits of Emmer wheat, O’Donoghue explained.
Six new farm courses at Mayo College
A novel initiative involving Mayo College and the national training body SOLAS will see six new innovative farming courses provided this year.
These six modules - from which it is possible to attain micro qualifications or secure educational credits – cover topics such as indigenous cattle production, indigenous crop production, small holdings, peatland restoration, invasive species control and seaweed production.
Michael Murphy, principal of Mayo College of Further Education and Training.\ Michael Mc Laughlin
Mayo College principal Michael Murphy said the courses are aimed at farmers who are “looking to diversify from traditional cattle and sheep enterprises and seeking to create a viable business”.
The course content for the six modules is currently being drawn up by Mayo College.
The courses will be available online, and free of charge, to students right around the country. The five-credit modules will provide stand-alone qualifications or they can be stacked and count towards higher academic qualifications.
They can also be taken as optional subjects for the Green Cert. The courses are funded through the Skills to Advance programme, which is a national initiative of SOLAS which provides fully accredited, highly subsidised, and targeted upskilling and reskilling opportunities to employees and employers.
Mary Lyons of SOLAS said that businesses and their workforce benefit from the targeted and flexibile upskilling through their local education training board.
Farmers in north Mayo need to reconnect with their local communities to chart a viable future for their small holdings, Justin Sammon maintains.
The CEO of Mayo North East LEADER is also adamant that farmers continuing to farm as they have done over the last four or five decades - concentrating almost exclusively on producing store lambs and hoggets or continental weanlings – is not sustainable long term.
Sammon believes that farmers need to look at older systems that are less intensive but potentially more profitable; essentially, looking to the past to map a way forward.
They also need to assess the local market opportunities for growing the likes of the Emmer wheat, or producing Maol cattle and traditional Cladóir sheep, he said.
Westport-based bakery owner Karen O’Donoghue agrees.
Her firm Happy Tummy is a major user of stone ground Emmer wheat, most of which is grown in Ireland, in its breads and other products.
Some of the Emmer wheat harvested at Mayo College, Westport.
However, the firm is currently importing Emmer flour from Northumberland – which O’Donoghue points out has a similar wet and windy climate to Mayo - because Irish stocks are not available.
More growers
“If there were more farmers across Ireland growing Emmer wheat we’d use it, and we’d be in a position to push it,” O’Donoghue said. “What we require is a grain with high fibre and nutrient content. Protein content isn’t a very important issue for us,” she added.
Happy Tummy has 11,500 customers across Britain and Ireland who are “obsessed” with the health benefits of Emmer wheat, O’Donoghue explained.
Six new farm courses at Mayo College
A novel initiative involving Mayo College and the national training body SOLAS will see six new innovative farming courses provided this year.
These six modules - from which it is possible to attain micro qualifications or secure educational credits – cover topics such as indigenous cattle production, indigenous crop production, small holdings, peatland restoration, invasive species control and seaweed production.
Michael Murphy, principal of Mayo College of Further Education and Training.\ Michael Mc Laughlin
Mayo College principal Michael Murphy said the courses are aimed at farmers who are “looking to diversify from traditional cattle and sheep enterprises and seeking to create a viable business”.
The course content for the six modules is currently being drawn up by Mayo College.
The courses will be available online, and free of charge, to students right around the country. The five-credit modules will provide stand-alone qualifications or they can be stacked and count towards higher academic qualifications.
They can also be taken as optional subjects for the Green Cert. The courses are funded through the Skills to Advance programme, which is a national initiative of SOLAS which provides fully accredited, highly subsidised, and targeted upskilling and reskilling opportunities to employees and employers.
Mary Lyons of SOLAS said that businesses and their workforce benefit from the targeted and flexibile upskilling through their local education training board.
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