Brennan Agri Services is based in Tobercurry, Co Sligo, and is run by Richard Brennan, who also farms a suckler and beef enterprise. The business has been built around baling, pit silage, slurry work and reseeding, and more recently lime and fertiliser spreading.
Richard’s nephew Michael has an active role in the business, helping out all year round. The lads believe in providing a quality reliable service to their customers. Having spent time with Richard, it is evident he and his team take pride in operating an impressive modern fleet of machinery. They operate 11 tractors and a wide range of equipment.
Michael Brennan (nephew), Gerry Mulligan (mechanic) and Richard Brennan of Brennan Agri Services.
Where it started
In 1989, Richard bought his first round baler, a Krone 125, and Tanco wrapper having had a small square baler for a number of years. Richard’s Krone 125 came shortly after the first round baler arrived in the area (1985). So he spent his summers baling with the Krone and his Massey Ferguson 290, baling anywhere between 5,000 and 8,000 bales a year.
Moving on with the times and increasing popularity of pit silage, Richard purchased a Tarrup 622 trailed precision chop harvester three years later. The harvester was pulled with a 100hp Case 1594, a big tractor at the time, Richard noted. Moving into the late 1990s, the older Krone 125 baler was then replaced with three Krone Round Pack balers. Richard said: “The Krone Round Packs were a great, simple, easily maintained baler in their day.” In the late 1990s, the fleet consisted of a number of Fiat 110-90s and a New Holland 8560 pulling the trailed harvester.
The year 2000 saw Richard upgrade his Tarrup 622 to a more modern JF 1100, cutting 1,000 acres on average annually. At this stage the business was well expanded, offering slurry services, baling and pit silage as well as reseeding.
As the years passed by, Richard kept the fleet updated, moving on to McHale Fusions and F550 balers, and newer JF harvester models, while running a mixed fleet of tractors including New Hollands, Deutz, Massey Fergusons, Sames and always one Fendt. “I was never stuck to one particular brand of tractor. I liked to keep a fair mix of brands all supplied new from local dealers and still do so today,” he said.
The Bredal K65 spreader is the most recent addition to the business.
Services provided
Brennan Agri Services provides a vast array of services within a 15-mile radius from its base just outside Tobercurry. Every year sees the business’s workload increase, as Richard has built a strong reputation within the community for a providing fast, reliable and quality service to his customers. Most of Brennan’s customer base is beef farmers, with a small number of dairy farmers.
The seasons generally start with slurry spreading, using either the umbilical pipe system, conventional splash plate or dribble bar system fitted to either the 2,000 gallon or 2,600 gallon Hi-Spec tankers. The last number of weeks have seen Richard take delivery of a new Bredal K65 trailed fertiliser and lime spreader. This is a new venture for the business which Richard sees going well, having spread more than 100t of lime already.
Moving into May the daily workload increases, with the team kept busy throughout the summer. At this stage the two Fusion 3 balers and the F5500 are generally out working and the two trailed JF 1060s work side by side. Six 16ft Donnelly trailers keep the grass moving back towards the Volvo L60 at the pit, depending on the draw. They make about 35,000 bales and cut 2,000 acres of pit silage annually. Last summer, just over 20,000 bales were put on the clock of his new Fusion 3 baler.
New to the silage fleet last year was Richard’s first set of butterfly mowers. He opted for McHale’s butterfly mowers as he has always been impressed with the build quality and reliability of his other McHale products.
One season on, Richard is delighted with the mowers. The butterflys mainly mow for the balers as the grass is then raked, while the trailed mowers and groupers mow ahead of the harvesters. This is because the groupers leave a nicer row of grass for the harvesters compared to that of the rakes.
Reseeding is a part of the business that Richard has found to be less popular in the last number of years, reckoning this is due to the poor beef prices and that farmers don’t have the money to put back into the land in some cases.
Cathal Killoran carries out all Brennan’s hedge-cutting, having spent over 20 years working alongside Richard.
Brennan Agri Services have ran trailed harvesters since the begining and continue to do so, now operating two JF1060's.
Trailed harvesters
Since 1993, Richard has been operating trailed precision chop harvesters and is one of the few contractors still operating such harvesters. He started off in 1993 with a Tarrup 622 and made the move to a JF 1100 in 2000, at the time lifting over 1,000 acres.
In 2006, a new JF 1100 was bought without selling the other. This was to keep a spare machine as backup. But Richard found as time went on the two harvesters ended up out working together to keep up with the work. Having moved from the JF 1100s to 1050s over the years, 2014 saw the oldest JF 1050 traded for a 1060 with a fold-down spout. Today, Brennan Agri Services runs two JF 1060s.
Asked what his reason for sticking with trailed harvesters over self-propelled machines was, Richard said: “I find trailed machines suit this area well. They are easy worked with, cheap to maintain and it leaves me with a free tractor afterwards.”
Staff
Brennan’s Agri Services employs almost all seasonal staff for the summer months and one or two men throughout the winter. The busiest times of the year will see between 12 and 14 staff, with Gerry full-time in the workshop. Richard said sourcing good drivers is becoming an issue as “now that the boom is back, many of the younger generation are working elsewhere”. Also, the window to get work done is much smaller than it used to be and everyone wants longer-term employment. Having said that, Richard noted he has a number of men that are part-time farming and it suits them to work during the summer.
Challenges ahead
Asked about the challenges ahead, Richard said: “Something has to be done for the beef farmer. At the minute beef farming is not sustainable. Beef farmers make up the majority of my customer share and without these farmers I have nothing.”
As both farmer and contractor, this leaves Richard uncertain about times ahead.
What’s in the fleet
Tractors: Fendt 716 Vario, Massey Ferguson 7618, Massey Ferguson 7620, Massey Ferguson 7720, Massey Ferguson 6465, Massey Ferguson 4365, New Holland T7.200, Deutz Agrotron 6160 x2, Deutz Agrotron 6165, Same Iron 150.
Forage harvesters: JF 1060 x2.
Balers: McHale Fusion 3 x2 McHale F5500.
Loading shovel: Volvo L60H.
Grass line: Kverneland trailed 10ft mower x 2, Kverneland trailed 9ft mower, McHale Pro Glide R3100 & B9000 combination mowers, Kverneland 9580 C twin rotor rakes x2.
Slurry equipment: 2000 gallon Hi-spec tanker with 6m Agquip trailing shoe, 2,300 gallon Hi-spec tanker, 2,600 gallon Hi-spec tanker, SlurryKat umbilical system, Cross agitator x2.
Trailers: 16ft Donnelly silage trailers x6, Broughan 24ft cattle trailer.
Reseeding equipment: K65 trailed Bredal spreader, three-furrow reversible Overum plough, Amazone power harrow, Amazone ZA-M fertiliser spreader.
Brennan Agri Services is based in Tobercurry, Co Sligo, and is run by Richard Brennan, who also farms a suckler and beef enterprise. The business has been built around baling, pit silage, slurry work and reseeding, and more recently lime and fertiliser spreading.
Richard’s nephew Michael has an active role in the business, helping out all year round. The lads believe in providing a quality reliable service to their customers. Having spent time with Richard, it is evident he and his team take pride in operating an impressive modern fleet of machinery. They operate 11 tractors and a wide range of equipment.
Michael Brennan (nephew), Gerry Mulligan (mechanic) and Richard Brennan of Brennan Agri Services.
Where it started
In 1989, Richard bought his first round baler, a Krone 125, and Tanco wrapper having had a small square baler for a number of years. Richard’s Krone 125 came shortly after the first round baler arrived in the area (1985). So he spent his summers baling with the Krone and his Massey Ferguson 290, baling anywhere between 5,000 and 8,000 bales a year.
Moving on with the times and increasing popularity of pit silage, Richard purchased a Tarrup 622 trailed precision chop harvester three years later. The harvester was pulled with a 100hp Case 1594, a big tractor at the time, Richard noted. Moving into the late 1990s, the older Krone 125 baler was then replaced with three Krone Round Pack balers. Richard said: “The Krone Round Packs were a great, simple, easily maintained baler in their day.” In the late 1990s, the fleet consisted of a number of Fiat 110-90s and a New Holland 8560 pulling the trailed harvester.
The year 2000 saw Richard upgrade his Tarrup 622 to a more modern JF 1100, cutting 1,000 acres on average annually. At this stage the business was well expanded, offering slurry services, baling and pit silage as well as reseeding.
As the years passed by, Richard kept the fleet updated, moving on to McHale Fusions and F550 balers, and newer JF harvester models, while running a mixed fleet of tractors including New Hollands, Deutz, Massey Fergusons, Sames and always one Fendt. “I was never stuck to one particular brand of tractor. I liked to keep a fair mix of brands all supplied new from local dealers and still do so today,” he said.
The Bredal K65 spreader is the most recent addition to the business.
Services provided
Brennan Agri Services provides a vast array of services within a 15-mile radius from its base just outside Tobercurry. Every year sees the business’s workload increase, as Richard has built a strong reputation within the community for a providing fast, reliable and quality service to his customers. Most of Brennan’s customer base is beef farmers, with a small number of dairy farmers.
The seasons generally start with slurry spreading, using either the umbilical pipe system, conventional splash plate or dribble bar system fitted to either the 2,000 gallon or 2,600 gallon Hi-Spec tankers. The last number of weeks have seen Richard take delivery of a new Bredal K65 trailed fertiliser and lime spreader. This is a new venture for the business which Richard sees going well, having spread more than 100t of lime already.
Moving into May the daily workload increases, with the team kept busy throughout the summer. At this stage the two Fusion 3 balers and the F5500 are generally out working and the two trailed JF 1060s work side by side. Six 16ft Donnelly trailers keep the grass moving back towards the Volvo L60 at the pit, depending on the draw. They make about 35,000 bales and cut 2,000 acres of pit silage annually. Last summer, just over 20,000 bales were put on the clock of his new Fusion 3 baler.
New to the silage fleet last year was Richard’s first set of butterfly mowers. He opted for McHale’s butterfly mowers as he has always been impressed with the build quality and reliability of his other McHale products.
One season on, Richard is delighted with the mowers. The butterflys mainly mow for the balers as the grass is then raked, while the trailed mowers and groupers mow ahead of the harvesters. This is because the groupers leave a nicer row of grass for the harvesters compared to that of the rakes.
Reseeding is a part of the business that Richard has found to be less popular in the last number of years, reckoning this is due to the poor beef prices and that farmers don’t have the money to put back into the land in some cases.
Cathal Killoran carries out all Brennan’s hedge-cutting, having spent over 20 years working alongside Richard.
Brennan Agri Services have ran trailed harvesters since the begining and continue to do so, now operating two JF1060's.
Trailed harvesters
Since 1993, Richard has been operating trailed precision chop harvesters and is one of the few contractors still operating such harvesters. He started off in 1993 with a Tarrup 622 and made the move to a JF 1100 in 2000, at the time lifting over 1,000 acres.
In 2006, a new JF 1100 was bought without selling the other. This was to keep a spare machine as backup. But Richard found as time went on the two harvesters ended up out working together to keep up with the work. Having moved from the JF 1100s to 1050s over the years, 2014 saw the oldest JF 1050 traded for a 1060 with a fold-down spout. Today, Brennan Agri Services runs two JF 1060s.
Asked what his reason for sticking with trailed harvesters over self-propelled machines was, Richard said: “I find trailed machines suit this area well. They are easy worked with, cheap to maintain and it leaves me with a free tractor afterwards.”
Staff
Brennan’s Agri Services employs almost all seasonal staff for the summer months and one or two men throughout the winter. The busiest times of the year will see between 12 and 14 staff, with Gerry full-time in the workshop. Richard said sourcing good drivers is becoming an issue as “now that the boom is back, many of the younger generation are working elsewhere”. Also, the window to get work done is much smaller than it used to be and everyone wants longer-term employment. Having said that, Richard noted he has a number of men that are part-time farming and it suits them to work during the summer.
Challenges ahead
Asked about the challenges ahead, Richard said: “Something has to be done for the beef farmer. At the minute beef farming is not sustainable. Beef farmers make up the majority of my customer share and without these farmers I have nothing.”
As both farmer and contractor, this leaves Richard uncertain about times ahead.
What’s in the fleet
Tractors: Fendt 716 Vario, Massey Ferguson 7618, Massey Ferguson 7620, Massey Ferguson 7720, Massey Ferguson 6465, Massey Ferguson 4365, New Holland T7.200, Deutz Agrotron 6160 x2, Deutz Agrotron 6165, Same Iron 150.
Forage harvesters: JF 1060 x2.
Balers: McHale Fusion 3 x2 McHale F5500.
Loading shovel: Volvo L60H.
Grass line: Kverneland trailed 10ft mower x 2, Kverneland trailed 9ft mower, McHale Pro Glide R3100 & B9000 combination mowers, Kverneland 9580 C twin rotor rakes x2.
Slurry equipment: 2000 gallon Hi-spec tanker with 6m Agquip trailing shoe, 2,300 gallon Hi-spec tanker, 2,600 gallon Hi-spec tanker, SlurryKat umbilical system, Cross agitator x2.
Trailers: 16ft Donnelly silage trailers x6, Broughan 24ft cattle trailer.
Reseeding equipment: K65 trailed Bredal spreader, three-furrow reversible Overum plough, Amazone power harrow, Amazone ZA-M fertiliser spreader.
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