Margaret Donnelly

Independentie

Sunday, 11 April 2021 | 3.5°C Dublin

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News [1]
Opinion [2]
Business [3]
Sport [4]
Life [5]
Style [7]
Entertainment [8]
Travel [9]

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Independentie

News [1]
Opinion [2]
Business [3]
Sport [4]
Life [5]
Style [7]
Entertainment [8]
Travel [9]

Menu Sections

Margaret Donnelly

Margaret Donnelly: Co-ops must not lose the farmer-led ethos that has done so much for Irish agriculture

Since their inception in 1889 Irish co-ops have been political animals by their very nature.

Problems: Frank Shinnick, of Strawhall, Fermoy, Co Cork. Photo: O’Gorman Photography.

Brexit leaves farmers without grass seed

Hundreds of farmers have been left unable to source grass seed from the UK as Brexit phytosanitary regulations halt imports into Ireland.

Limits: Glanbia says it will be unable to process peak milk supplies from its suppliers from 2022 to 2024 and a penalty of up to 30pc will apply to milk supplies above the new peak season limits

Politicians call on An Taisce to withdraw objection to Glanbia cheese plant

A number of politicians, including former ministers have called on An Taisce to withdraw its objection to a planned cheese plant by Glanbia.

Martin Walsh in his empty pub in Thomastown. Picture: Dylan Vaughan

‘These things happening in a small town are important, but that’s all gone for the year’

Martin Walsh should be gearing up planning and preparations for the Thomastown Show, but for a second year running Covid restrictions means the show won't take place this year.

IFA president Tim Cullinan on his Tipperary pig farm. Photo: Alf Harvey.

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IFA tight-lipped on its beef sector investigation

IFA is remaining tight-lipped on its investigation into potential “anti-competitive behaviour” in the beef sector.

Margaret Donnelly: Lawyers likely to be the only winners in latest instalment of the farm produce branding saga

The old saying ‘closing the stable door after the horse has bolted’ comes to mind when you look at the IFA’s campaign targeting Lidl and Aldi’s liquid milk branding policy.

Pat Flynn's February 2019-born Friesian heifer, which calved last week, sold for €2,180. Photos: O'Gorman Photography.

‘Exceptional’ dairy cattle secure exceptional prices in online sale

An online sale of 64 cattle on Saturday drew an exceptional amount of bidders and prices. But they were exceptional cattle, according to Ballyjamesduff Mart manager John Tevlin, who handled the sale through MartEye.

Glanbia Ireland has a 2.4 billion litre milk pool from 4,800 suppliers

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Other dairy co-ops reviewing processing capacity, as Glanbia moves to restrict peak milk supply

With Glanbia announcing plans to restrict milk supply growth during the peak season, a number of other dairy co-ops are also reviewing their processing capacity, the Farming Independent has learned.

Payment rates for the new scheme have yet to be decided.

Small farmers set to be big winners in new environmental pilot scheme

Small farmers are going to be the big winners from the new agri-environment pilot programme, the Farming Independent has learned.

John and Geraldine Kealy with their family, Emma with Belle; Áine, Sarah, Séan and Laura Mae in their milking parlour under construction at Sentry Hill, Borris in Ossory, Co. Laois. Picture: Alf Harvey.

My Week: ‘We’re a drystock farm with some tillage, but I also hope to be milking 80 cows this year’

John Kealy has never milked a cow in his life, but that’s not going to stop the Borris-in-Ossory farmer diversifying his farm to include a dairy operation.

Margaret Donnelly: Policy-makers and farm leaders face complex decisions in deciding who are the ‘real’ as opposed to ‘armchair’ farmers

How and to what extent the EU and the State should support farmers will be a defining theme for agriculture over the next decade.

Going their own way: Sinéad Moran and Mick McGrath own a micro-dairy with a herd of traditional breed cows on 27 acres of high-nature-value farmland near Aghamore in Co Mayo. Photos: Ray Ryan

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‘Our small suckler farm in the West wasn’t enough to make a living, so we set up an organic micro-dairy’

Sinéad Moran and Mick McGrath took over a 27-acre farm near Knock, Co Mayo in 2015 that Mick inherited from his uncle.

IFA Longford is highlighting the work of family beef farms in the county

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Grassroots hit out at IFA decisions on regional issues

Recent decision-making by IFA headquarters in Dublin has ruffled feathers among representatives in the regions, the Farming Independent understands.

Meat factories face grilling over price cuts

Meat factory representatives will be under pressure at today’s Beef Taskforce meeting to justify the sharp cuts to beef prices in recent weeks despite export markets remaining strong.

Margaret Donnelly: Farmers don’t want another report — it’s time for action

Any time you chat to beef farmers around the country, you’ll hear a myriad of problems facing the sector.

‘According to Teagasc, 75pc of the workers on Irish horticulture farms are non-Irish’

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Covid quarantine rules pose serious threat to fruit and veg sector’s harvest prospects

Demands for compulsory and supervised quarantining of all people entering Ireland could seriously disrupt plans to bring in 1,500 seasonal workers for the horticulture sector.

Robin Talbot, Ballacolla. Picture: Alf Harvey.

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‘Don’t sacrifice beef for dairy’ - Top farmers raise concerns over beef sectors future

Laois beef farmer Robin Talbot believes suckler farming shouldn’t be sacrificed to facilitate dairy expansion.

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Beef farming not viable in its current form, says former ICSA president

Malcolm Thompson doesn’t believe beef farming is sustainable in its current form.

Prices for grassland, it says, saw strongest increases in the south east, with prices up 2.1pc. Photo: Don MacMonagle

Strong buyer sentiment and ‘pent up’ demand drives land prices up in last quarter of 2020

The current momentum in land prices is predicted to continue for the rest of the year as the lack of supply of good quality land remains an issue, according to a land market report.

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Scheme offering €25,000 grants to restore farm buildings opens

One of the most popular schemes, the GLAS traditional farm buildings grant, has opened to farmers in GLAS.

Richard Bruton. Photo: Gareth Chaney Collins

Blow to 2030 agri strategy as ‘green’ lobby claim draft plans don’t deliver

Pressure is mounting on Irish agriculture to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as the Environmental Pillar withdraws from the 2030 Agri-Food Strategy committee.

Margaret Donnelly: ‘Green’ lobby will achieve nothing by walking away from the hard talking on farming’s future

No one expected the development of a new strategy for Irish agriculture to be easy.

Approximately 90pc of all plantings were done by farmers 10 years ago, but in 2020 it was 30pc.

New strategy launched to tackle ongoing forestry issues

A new report on the forestry sector, heavily critical of the Department of Agriculture's handling of issues in the sector, has recommended a new governance structure to address the ongoing issues.

The Tánaiste told a recent Kerry IFA meeting that ”there will be a ten-fold increase in the number of health certificates needed for exports to Britain"

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Brexit health certs may ‘seriously disrupt’ trade across Irish sea

New health certification requirements for food and drink exports to Britain have the potential to seriously disrupt trade across the Irish Sea.

Sources say bank accountants want to be informed of risks

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Banks seek Department’s advice on future finance for dairy farmers

National banks are reaching out to the Department of Agriculture (DAFM) for advice on facilitating future finance to dairy farmers, the Farming Independent understands.

Aonghusa Fahy at his farm in Ardrahan, Co Galway

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How this farmer is able to juggle the demands of a fragmented beef farm with a full-time teaching job and a family

With land in Galway and Clare, Aonghusa Fahy has a complicated farming life. On top of that he has a 14-month-old child with wife Olivia and a teaching job, leaving him no option but to be disciplined.

With the ewes due to start lambing in three weeks, Gavin hopes most will be finished by mid April. Photo: Hany Marzouk

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My week: ‘Poor rural internet had a big effect on the speed at which I was able to do my work’

Gavin Treacy started farming for himself when his neighbour gifted him and his sister, Andrea, two suck lambs in 2008. Those surplus suck lambs from their neighbour helped Gavin start his own flock on the family farm outside Loughrea, Galway.

The research has been published in the Nature journal Scientific Reports

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Margaret Donnelly: Is the dairy debate about to turn sour?

The “mature discussion” being called for in the dairy sector will taste like sour milk to a lot of farmers.

The Minister confirmed recently that it is his intention is to ‘rest’ convergence once more this year. Gareth Chaney Collins

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‘Logistics and timeline led to resting convergence plans’

Plans to continue convergence were put on ice this year by Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue, who said that due to the “enormous logistical and operational requirements in the process, the time-frame was not available to consider making changes for 2021”.

The farmer who tested positive for cocaine is due to appear at a sitting of the local courts in the coming weeks

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Farmer caught driving tractor under influence of cocaine

A farmer tested positive for both cocaine and cannabis when he was stopped driving his tractor during a routine checkpoint recently in Ballyshannon, Co Donegal.

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