Eddie Moriarty, Anglesboro, Co Limerick
Eddie Moriarty from Anglesborough, Co Limerick.
Dairy, beef and sheep
“I farm at the foot of the Galtee Mountains in Limerick. We’ve dairy sucklers and sheep. We’ve only small numbers, less than 60 cows. We’ve pedigree Angus cows, as well as a handful of sheep.
“The derogation is really affecting the people with 50 to 60 cows. They’re so dependent on those 50 cows.
"My son had to go back working the first of September this year because numbers will have to be cut.
“I was gutted. It’s nice to be a full-time farmer. It’s tough farming part-time when you have to get up at four o’clock in the morning, do your farm work and then go face your daytime job.
“The current milk price is absolutely scandalous, but then again China have stopped buying. There seems to be no money there and they really kept it up the last time.
“I found this year a very difficult year for farming weather-wise. It was on par with 1985 – extremely difficult summer and an extremely difficult harvest. A lot of the silage made this summer was very poor quality.”
Brian Beirne, Carrick On Shannon, Co Leitrim
Sucklers
“We’ve 45 suckler cows. Half of them we sell as weanlings and the other half are finished. Weanling prices are good, but they need to be with the cost of everything going through the roof.
“We participate in nearly every scheme going because that’s the way farming has gone. "Unfortunately, you have to keep the money coming in the post as well as through the marts.
“We were just in at the Department tent enquiring about the new fertiliser database. They just helped us out there to put in our closing stocks.
“This year was the toughest we’ve seen weather-wise in Leitrim. The meadows were bad this year the way the spring came in. We’re OK for fodder, but we’re lucky we have our own way of doing it.
“We chatted to Minister McConalogue today and he seems to be a very nice, plain fella. Down the years, I’d rate him as the best yet nearly. It’s not easy for them fellas either.”
Beef
Neville Conroy and family at the Ploughing.
“I wouldn’t go the Ploughing every year, but when it’s local enough I would. The machinery and the cattle will be the main things that I’ll be looking at.
“I am a beef farmer. The price was good enough in the spring alright, but from the summer onwards the price fell back a good bit.
“It will be a poor enough winter I think after all the rain the past few weeks. The winter is nearly in on us.”
Calf to beef
Niall Keane and his son at the Ploughing.
“I just came to see what is new in the farming industry and what’s on the horizon, what’s happening in future.
“Look, stock have went well so far, but the rising costs [haven’t]. It will be interesting to see with the price of grain falling, inputs should reduce. We’ll see in the future. It’s the high inputs that have it that your balance is reduced to a minimum.
“Weather conditions are going well and ground conditions are well at the moment, so we hope that the autumn extends well so we can keep stock out as long as we can this year.”
Eddie Moriarty, Anglesboro, Co Limerick
Eddie Moriarty from Anglesborough, Co Limerick.
Dairy, beef and sheep
“I farm at the foot of the Galtee Mountains in Limerick. We’ve dairy sucklers and sheep. We’ve only small numbers, less than 60 cows. We’ve pedigree Angus cows, as well as a handful of sheep.
“The derogation is really affecting the people with 50 to 60 cows. They’re so dependent on those 50 cows.
"My son had to go back working the first of September this year because numbers will have to be cut.
“I was gutted. It’s nice to be a full-time farmer. It’s tough farming part-time when you have to get up at four o’clock in the morning, do your farm work and then go face your daytime job.
“The current milk price is absolutely scandalous, but then again China have stopped buying. There seems to be no money there and they really kept it up the last time.
“I found this year a very difficult year for farming weather-wise. It was on par with 1985 – extremely difficult summer and an extremely difficult harvest. A lot of the silage made this summer was very poor quality.”
Brian Beirne, Carrick On Shannon, Co Leitrim
Sucklers
“We’ve 45 suckler cows. Half of them we sell as weanlings and the other half are finished. Weanling prices are good, but they need to be with the cost of everything going through the roof.
“We participate in nearly every scheme going because that’s the way farming has gone. "Unfortunately, you have to keep the money coming in the post as well as through the marts.
“We were just in at the Department tent enquiring about the new fertiliser database. They just helped us out there to put in our closing stocks.
“This year was the toughest we’ve seen weather-wise in Leitrim. The meadows were bad this year the way the spring came in. We’re OK for fodder, but we’re lucky we have our own way of doing it.
“We chatted to Minister McConalogue today and he seems to be a very nice, plain fella. Down the years, I’d rate him as the best yet nearly. It’s not easy for them fellas either.”
Beef
Neville Conroy and family at the Ploughing.
“I wouldn’t go the Ploughing every year, but when it’s local enough I would. The machinery and the cattle will be the main things that I’ll be looking at.
“I am a beef farmer. The price was good enough in the spring alright, but from the summer onwards the price fell back a good bit.
“It will be a poor enough winter I think after all the rain the past few weeks. The winter is nearly in on us.”
Calf to beef
Niall Keane and his son at the Ploughing.
“I just came to see what is new in the farming industry and what’s on the horizon, what’s happening in future.
“Look, stock have went well so far, but the rising costs [haven’t]. It will be interesting to see with the price of grain falling, inputs should reduce. We’ll see in the future. It’s the high inputs that have it that your balance is reduced to a minimum.
“Weather conditions are going well and ground conditions are well at the moment, so we hope that the autumn extends well so we can keep stock out as long as we can this year.”
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