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Countryside
The spring barley harvest pictured at Redcross in Co Wicklow, with typical mixed farming countryside and the Irish Sea in the background. Part of the visual appeal of Ireland is that the agricultural land is farmed by an estimated 139,829 family farms. Two thirds of Ireland’s farms are less than 30 hectares in size. The Central Statistics Office (CSO) Farm Structure Survey in 2007 reported an average farm size of 32.3 hectares (75 acres) (www.cso.ie). The Farm Structures Survey involved a sample size of 55,000 farms and was also undertaken in 1991 and 2000. Fresh data on farm sizes will emerge in late 2012 when the full results of the 2010 Census of Agriculture are published.
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Countryside -
Beef calves from a dairy herd.
Calves of a beef breed from the dairy herd are an important source of raw materials for the Irish beef industry. Dairy herds breed their best animals to dairy breeds in order to provide replacements, but around 30% of the national dairy herd is mated to a beef sire in order to increase the value of the offspring. Angus and Hereford, which are noted for their ease of calving, are the most popular beef breeds for use in the dairy herd.
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Image is present on following page(s): Beef Calves, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming
Beef calves from a dairy herd. -
National ploughing championships
The National Ploughing Championships (www.npa.ie) take place each year in late September. It has grown into the largest event on the Irish farming calendar. Taking place over three days, the event is about far more than ploughing, with thousands of trade stands, demonstrations and retail outlets aimed at the farming community. The event takes place across a site running to hundreds of acres for the ploughing competitions, car parks and exhibitors. One of the attractions of the event is that it moves around the country to different locations. In 2011, an estimated 200,000 people attended over the three days in Athy, Co Kildare.
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Image is present on following page(s): Events in the farming calendar, Silage making, Farming in Ireland, Overview: Farming in Ireland, Farming in Ireland, Farming in Ireland, farming in Ireland, overview, farming in Ireland, overview
National ploughing championships -
Turning the soil
The soil of Ireland is an immensely valuable, and finite, national resource, which forms and evolves slowly over very long periods of time. It is the basis for almost all farming activity. Soil is a biologically active, complex mixture of weathered minerals, organic matter, organisms, air and water that provides the foundation for life in terrestrial ecosystems. The general consensus is that soil quality in Ireland is good. Irish farmers have a major responsibility to nurture and protect this valuable resource for future generations.
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Image is present on following page(s): coniferous forests and top soil, Silage making, Farming in Ireland, Overview: Farming in Ireland, Farming in Ireland, Farming in Ireland, farming in Ireland, overview, farming in Ireland, overview
Turning the soil -
A Charolais calf
Charolais cattle are the most popular beef breed in Ireland – (www.icbf.com). They originate in the Massif Central region of France, with the first imports to Ireland in 1969. Today, there are over 3,000 breeders of pedigree Charolais cattle in Ireland (www.charolais.ie). Pure bred or pedigree Charolais cattle have a distinctive white coat, although when crossed with other breeds they can be seen in various shades of grey or white. Their main attributes are fast growth, docility and ability to thrive when grazing or when fed intensively indoors.
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Image is present on following page(s): Beef Imports and Exports, Beef Cattle Identification and Sales, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming
A Charolais calf -
Cattle mart
Livestock marts are located throughout Ireland and are used as trading centres where regular - mostly weekly – live auctions of livestock take place. The majority of marts are owned by farmer co-operatives (www.icos.ie), while some are privately run businesses. In 2010, a total of 1.68million livestock sales through marts were recorded, with the peak month, October, accounting for 249,000. Animals are sold by public auction, with the video showing a typical sale day at Kilkenny mart in autumn 2011.
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Image is present on following page(s): Beef Cattle Identification and Sales, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming
Cattle mart -
Laying hens
Poultry is the name given to birds that provide us with meat or eggs. The chicken, the turkey, the duck and the goose are the birds most commonly kept by farmers in Ireland. A female chicken is called a hen and a newborn chicken is called a chick. A male chicken is called a cock or a rooster and a young male chicken is called a cockerel. Chickens live in large groups called flocks.
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Image is present on following page(s): Pig & Poultry Production, Pig & Poultry Production, Pig & Poultry Production, Pig & Poultry Production
Laying hens -
Pat O’ Keeffe, author of the Farming in Ireland section
Pat O’ Keeffe is the news editor and deputy editor of the Irish Farmers Journal.
Image is present on following page(s): Silage making, Farming in Ireland, Overview: Farming in Ireland, Farming in Ireland, Farming in Ireland, farming in Ireland, overview, farming in Ireland, overview
Pat O’ Keeffe, author of the Farming in Ireland section -
Cattle show
During the Summer, agricultural shows are hosted by communities throughout Ireland. A calendar of dates is available from the Irish Shows Association at (www.irishshows.org). Breeders of pedigree cattle, sheep and horses compete for the coveted rosettes, while there are numerous other events to entertain and amuse. The largest show on the calendar is the national livestock show held each year in Tullamore, Co Offaly (pictured). It attracts over 50,000 people and in 2011 hosted 1,900 cattle classes, as well as sheep, horses and countless other attractions (www.tullamore.com)
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Cattle show -
Piggery
Pigs live in a piggery. During a pig’s lifetime, it will live in three different houses within a piggery. A piglet begins life in a farrowing house where the sow will give birth. It will remain here until it is four weeks old. It will then be moved to a weaner house, where it stays until it is about 12 weeks old and approximately 32 kg in live weight. Following this, it will move to a finishing house, where it will reside until it is 6 months old and ready to be slaughtered at around 90 kg. Once a piglet is weaned and moved to the weaner house, the sow is moved to the dry sow house.
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Piggery -
Flock of sheep
A group of sheep is called a flock. There are many different strains or breeds of sheep in Ireland, with two main categories - hill/mountain breeds and lowland breeds. The lowland sheep are concentrated in the inland counties and low lying land, while the hill sheep are a hardier type more suited to the tough terrain of the mountains in the west and in Wicklow. Females that are over one year of age and that have given birth to a lamb are called sheep. A mature female sheep is called a ewe. A mature male sheep is called a ram and a castrated (neutered) male sheep is called a wether.
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Image is present on following page(s): Sheep Breeds and Numbers, Sheep Farming, Sheep Farming, Sheep Farming, Sheep Farming
Flock of sheep -
Tagging
Every calf in Ireland must be tagged and registered within 20 days of birth. This unique 12 digit identification number must be maintained throughout the life of the animal and all changes in status or ownership must be notified to the central Animal database maintained by the Department of Agriculture. The system generates 100% traceability which is important for public and animal health protection. The Animal Identification and Movement System (AIM) database produces detailed statistics on the Irish cattle herd each year (www.agriculture.gov.ie).
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Image is present on following page(s): Beef Cattle Identification and Sales, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming, Beef Farming
Tagging -
Chickens
Chicken meat is now the most popular meat in Ireland, with average consumption of 30kgs per capita. The industry is highly consolidated with only a small number of large scale growers who are closely linked to the processing firm. Ireland’s largest poultry firm is Carton Brothers in Co Cavan (www.chicken.ie). The company employs over 600 people and has 150 farmer suppliers. Meanwhile, Ireland’s largest producer of duck meat and associated products is Silver Hills Foods, based at Emyvale in Co Monaghan (www.silverhillfoods.com).
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Image is present on following page(s): Pig & Poultry Production, Pig & Poultry Production, Pig & Poultry Production, Pig & Poultry Production
Chickens -
Harvest
Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney pictured driving a combine harvester as he assists in the barley harvest on his home farm at Roberts Cove in Co Cork. Cereals are types of grass with grains that can be eaten or used to make food. The main cereals grown in Ireland are wheat, oats and barley. Their seeds, which are called grains, are used to feed animals and to make food such as bread and porridge. “Milling Wheat” is used to make flour. A large proportion of the crop in Ireland is used for pig and cattle feed. Oats are used in porridge and in muesli. They are also important for use as a feed for horses.
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Harvest -
Oilseed rape
The distinctive bright yellow flowers of a crop of Oilseed rape, a member of the Brassica family. It is grown for its oil content and is increasingly popular in Ireland. There are two types grown in Ireland - Winter oilseed rape and Spring oilseed rape. Oilseed rape acts as a break crop in a tillage rotation in order to prevent the build up of cereal diseases. Winter oilseed rape planting almost doubled between 2010 and 2011; from 8,000ha to 15,000ha.
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Oilseed rape -
Prize bulls at a show
Beef cattle breeding in Ireland is being advanced by the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (www.icbf.com). The organisation, based in Bandon in Co Cork, was established in 1997 and has as its mission “to achieve the greatest possible genetic gain in the national cattle herd for the benefit of Irish farmers and the industry”.
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Prize bulls at a show -
Flahavans
An important user of organic oats grown in Ireland is Flahavans, a family business now in its sixth generation. There has been an oats mill at Kilmacthomas, Co Waterford since the late 1700's. An oatflaking facility was added in 1935. Today Flahavan's Progress Oatlets is an increasingly popular choice for breakfast in Ireland and abroad. Flavahans dominates the warm breakfast category in Ireland with their famous porridge and the company is also growing their exports to the UK and USA (www.flahavans.com).
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Flahavans -
Cereals
Ireland is a net importer of cereal grains, but there is a very specialised and efficient group of growers producing grain in Ireland for the home market. Crops are either sown in the autumn or spring, but all are generally harvested between July and September. Spring Barley (pictured) is the most popular cereal crop, grown by over 9,000 farmers in 2010. It is used for the malting, seed and feed industries. Winter wheat, winter barley and winter and spring oats are the other important grain crops produced in Ireland.
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Cereals -
Cattle breeding
Thousands of farmers in Ireland are engaged in pedigree breeding of cattle, with their purebred stock registered in the herdbook of their chosen breed. The numerically largest pedigree breed is the Irish Holstein Friesian Association (ww.ihfa.ie) with over 3,000 breeders (pictured). Eighteen beef breed societies are participants in the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (www.icbf.com). The following are the main beef breeds, as well as their country of origin and year of first importation: Angus (Great Britain, 1843); Aubrac (France, 1992); Blonde d’Aquitaine (France, 1974); Belgian Blue (Belgium, 1980); Charolais (France, 1964); Hereford (Great Britain, 1775); Limousin (France, 1972); Piemontese (Italy, 1982); Parthenaise (France, 1997); Saler (France, 1997); Shorthorn (Great Britain, 1882) and Simmental (Austria, 1971).
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Cattle breeding -
Barley
Barley is used in the production of feed for cattle and pigs. A proportion of the crop in Ireland is also specially grown as “malting barley” to be used to make beer and whiskey by the brewing industry. Pictured above are combine harvesters gathering the crop.
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Barley -
Meat factory
Over 1.4million bovine animals were slaughtered at approved export meat plants in 2010. This consisted of 664,000 steers, 444,000 heifers and 337,000 cows. The product is sold in a range of formats to Irish and international customers. Irish beef processors now have a substantial presence in the retail markets of the UK and Continental Europe (www.bordbia.ie).
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Meat factory -
Teagasc Oak Park
Teagasc Crops Research Centre in Oak Park, home to the National Centre for Arable Crops Research. Situated on 225 hectares, the centre’s main objective is to support the arable crops sector of Irish agriculture. Teagasc is a national organization providing integrated research, advisory and training services to agriculture and the food industry.
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Teagasc Oak Park -
Feature: Farming in Ireland
The Farming in Ireland section provides an overview of different types of farms as well as sustainability and technology in modern farming practices.
Feature: Farming in Ireland -
Maize
Irish farmers grew over 22,500 hectares of maize in 2010, the vast majority of which was for use as feed for livestock. It is harvested and ensiled in a silage pit where the crop, including the cob, ferments. The highly nutritious silage is mainly used by dairy farmers who milk cows through the winter, as it is an excellent feed for lactating cows. A high proportion of the Irish crop is sown under plastic, in order to ensure that it gets sufficient heat in the Spring time.
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Maize -
Glenisk
Glenisk in Co Offaly use up to 90% of the organic milk produced in Ireland for their range of dairy products, including yogurt and fresh milk. It is run by the Cleary family at Killeigh in Co Offaly. The company sources organic milk from around 50 Irish dairy farmers that are certified organic. This means no chemicals, pesticides or antibiotics are used in the production of milk or any other ingredient.
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Glenisk -
White horse in a field
A white horse in a field in Leitrim.
Image courtesy of Angela McMorrow
Image is present on following page(s): Equine
White horse in a field -
Straw
Straw is the stem of the cereal plant left over after the grain has been removed from the cereal crop when it is cut by a combine harvester. Straw is usually collected and compacted for transport in the form of round or square bales. Most straw is bought by livestock farmers for use as winter feed or more commonly as a bedding material to keep animals warm and dry during when indoors on concrete floors. Wheaten straw is used by the mushroom industry to create the growing compost. Straw can also be shredded and left in the field, where it adds value by increasing the organic matter content of the soil.
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Straw -
Three bullocks in a field.
Beef bullocks pictured at Teagasc Grange Research centre in Co Meath. Padraic Colum (1881-1972), in his poem, “A Drover”, talks of walking his cattle to “Meath of the pastures”. The county was and still is regarded as the premier county for fattening cattle. Young stock born in the suckler herds of the west often complete their days in Meath or neighbouring Kildare, where dry, level land offers plentiful grass and the required grain crops for finishing diets. “To Meath of the pastures, From wet hills by the sea, Through Leitrim and Longford, Go my cattle and me.”
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Three bullocks in a field.