Tullow Macra na Feirme is looking for past members to share memories or photographs of their time in the organisation to help mark the club’s 75th anniversary.

In 1946, the world economy was still suffering the after effects of World War II, emigration was an integral part of Irish society and in the rural town of Tullow, a group of young farmers came together and set up Tullow Macra na Feirme.

Much has changed over the past 75 years, but one tradition remains as strong as ever. That is the support and friendship given to members. This is what the current members want to illustrate in the video montage.

Patrick Jordan, Tullow Macra na Feirme club chair added: “Given the unpredictable nature of the current global pandemic, it is difficult to plan anything.

“However, the current members believe it is important to not let this significant milestone go by without marking it in some way.”

If anyone is interested in contributing to the video montage, you can contact club chairperson Patrick Jordan on 087-672 2757 or paddyjordan.ballon@gmail.com.

Aurivo/Northwest Macra silage competition

The announcement of the Aurivo/Northwest silage competition winners took place recently on Zoom, with members across the nine counties of the northwest region in attendance.

Members listened to a presentation from Justin McDonagh, nutritionist with Aurivo, who discussed the value of making good silage along with the target silage quality for various categories of livestock.

Members also heard about the process used in analysing silage and how to interpret the silage analysis reports.

Alastair Pollock (Carrigallen Macra), the overall winner of the competition, also gave a presentation on the key steps taken on his farm to help achieve top-quality silage. Andrew Stafford (Ramor Macra) came second, with Fergus O’Rourke (Carrigallen Macra), claiming third place.

There was very little difference between the top three samples, with the winning sample achieving a dry matter of 27% and a DMD of 78.

Event organiser and northwest vice president Fergus O’Rourke thanked all members for submitting samples, with 124 samples submitted to the competition.

He also thanked Aurivo for providing the sampling service and a very generous prize fund.

He congratulated Alastair and Andrew on their achievement and encouraged all young farmers to continue to adopt new technology on their farms, as he said the more information you have, the easier it will be to manage and make the correct decisions.

Well done to all involved!