Rockwell Farm, one of Tipperary’s largest farms, is to be sold, the Irish Farmers Journal can reveal.
The dairy farm, extending to over 800ac, is owned by the Spiritan
order and is being sold as part of its commitment to make redress to victims of sexual abuse.
The farm surrounds Rockwell College, a co-ed boarding and day
school that was first established in 1864. It’s understood the college grounds
extend to 100ac.
Rockwell was a flagship agricultural college in the 1980s, educating around 120
students per year, but the agricultural college closed its doors
in 2001 as student numbers fell.
The farm, which had some ground in tillage up to around 10 years
ago, is now a specialist grass-based dairy farm, run by farm manager Michael
Long and milking up to 650 cows at its peak.
Motorists on the M8 Cork-Dublin motorway will see the herd regularly crossing the motorway for milking using a specially-constructed cow overpass.
Dairy cows cross a dairy bridge on the M8 at Rockwell College outside Cashel, Co Tipperary. \ Philip Doyle
The farm was among the top 40 recipients of Basic Income
Support for Sustainability (BISS) payments in the 2024 financial year,
according to the Department of Agriculture's CAP beneficiaries list, published in
May 2025.
The farm business, trading under Holy Ghost Fathers,
received a total CAP payment of just under €84,000. Its BISS payment amounted
to over €61,000 of the €84,000.
Tipperary land demand
Rockwell is in located in south Tipperary, where agricultural land
has made headlines for the last two years. Billionaires John Magnier of
Coolmore and US-based construction magnate Maurice Regan were involved in a
bidding war for the 751ac Barne Estate that went to the High Court.
Whether either of the two thoroughbred breeders will be
interested in a specialist dairy unit remains to be seen. Rockwell is top-class
land and within close range of Coolmore’s 10,000ac-plus land bank and Regan’s €22.25m
Barne Estate in Clonmel.
Even if the billionaires decide not to bid, informed sources
suggest the land will comfortably make in excess of €20,000/ac. While there may
be few single buyers with the firepower to buy the entire farm, they suggest
that if the farm were sold in lots, competition would be fierce among Tipperary
farmers.
In a statement to the Irish Farmers Journal on Wednesday, Brendan Carr, Spiritan Provincial, confirmed that Rockwell was being sold as part of its commitment to make redress to victims of sexual abuse.
He said: “A commitment was made to those sexually abused by Spiritans that we would provide a clear update on the steps we are taking towards redress and healing for all who suffered sexual abuse in childhood through the deplorable actions of members of our Province and those employed by us.”
He said they “remain profoundly sorry for the abuse suffered by those in our care, and we are committed – morally and practically – to a process of truth, justice and redress that is genuine, comprehensive and sustainable”.
He added that progress on redress was not as fast as anyone would wish, saying: “Victims and survivors have carried this burden for decades, and we understand that every delay feels like a renewed injury.”
Financial position
“We have been fully transparent about our financial position. The reality is we do not yet have the liquid resources required to begin issuing redress payments,” he said, noting the Spiritans would sell assets to create the required liquidity.
“Progress is being made and Rockwell Farm will be the first of these properties to be sold, but this involves multiple legal, valuation and regulatory steps that simply take time to complete.”
Rockwell Farm, one of Tipperary’s largest farms, is to be sold, the Irish Farmers Journal can reveal.
The dairy farm, extending to over 800ac, is owned by the Spiritan
order and is being sold as part of its commitment to make redress to victims of sexual abuse.
The farm surrounds Rockwell College, a co-ed boarding and day
school that was first established in 1864. It’s understood the college grounds
extend to 100ac.
Rockwell was a flagship agricultural college in the 1980s, educating around 120
students per year, but the agricultural college closed its doors
in 2001 as student numbers fell.
The farm, which had some ground in tillage up to around 10 years
ago, is now a specialist grass-based dairy farm, run by farm manager Michael
Long and milking up to 650 cows at its peak.
Motorists on the M8 Cork-Dublin motorway will see the herd regularly crossing the motorway for milking using a specially-constructed cow overpass.
Dairy cows cross a dairy bridge on the M8 at Rockwell College outside Cashel, Co Tipperary. \ Philip Doyle
The farm was among the top 40 recipients of Basic Income
Support for Sustainability (BISS) payments in the 2024 financial year,
according to the Department of Agriculture's CAP beneficiaries list, published in
May 2025.
The farm business, trading under Holy Ghost Fathers,
received a total CAP payment of just under €84,000. Its BISS payment amounted
to over €61,000 of the €84,000.
Tipperary land demand
Rockwell is in located in south Tipperary, where agricultural land
has made headlines for the last two years. Billionaires John Magnier of
Coolmore and US-based construction magnate Maurice Regan were involved in a
bidding war for the 751ac Barne Estate that went to the High Court.
Whether either of the two thoroughbred breeders will be
interested in a specialist dairy unit remains to be seen. Rockwell is top-class
land and within close range of Coolmore’s 10,000ac-plus land bank and Regan’s €22.25m
Barne Estate in Clonmel.
Even if the billionaires decide not to bid, informed sources
suggest the land will comfortably make in excess of €20,000/ac. While there may
be few single buyers with the firepower to buy the entire farm, they suggest
that if the farm were sold in lots, competition would be fierce among Tipperary
farmers.
In a statement to the Irish Farmers Journal on Wednesday, Brendan Carr, Spiritan Provincial, confirmed that Rockwell was being sold as part of its commitment to make redress to victims of sexual abuse.
He said: “A commitment was made to those sexually abused by Spiritans that we would provide a clear update on the steps we are taking towards redress and healing for all who suffered sexual abuse in childhood through the deplorable actions of members of our Province and those employed by us.”
He said they “remain profoundly sorry for the abuse suffered by those in our care, and we are committed – morally and practically – to a process of truth, justice and redress that is genuine, comprehensive and sustainable”.
He added that progress on redress was not as fast as anyone would wish, saying: “Victims and survivors have carried this burden for decades, and we understand that every delay feels like a renewed injury.”
Financial position
“We have been fully transparent about our financial position. The reality is we do not yet have the liquid resources required to begin issuing redress payments,” he said, noting the Spiritans would sell assets to create the required liquidity.
“Progress is being made and Rockwell Farm will be the first of these properties to be sold, but this involves multiple legal, valuation and regulatory steps that simply take time to complete.”
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