Ear to the Ground - Winter 2016

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WINTER 2016

OPENING DOORS MINISTER

ROAD TRIP

IRELAND’S BOOMING GIN MAKERS

EAR TO THE GROUND IN THE US

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EAR TO THE GROUND WINTER 2016

MICHAEL CREED ON HIS NEW ROLE

HIGH SPIRITS

IRELAND’S FEMALE FARMERS PLUS ORGANIC FARMING // INDUSTRY REVIEW // TECHNOLOGY // YOUNG IRISH FARMERS // VINTAGE TRACTORS // IRISH FIELD NAMES // FARM SAFETY // BREXIT // THE IRISH PUB // FASHION // FOOD // MOTORING

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16/02/2017 14/11/2016 10:57 15:22 14/11/2016 12:28

WELCOME EDITOR: Conor Forrest DEPUTY EDITOR: Joseph O’Connor EDITORIAL STAFF: Orla Connolly, Rachel Murray, Erin Donnelly MANAGING EDITOR: Mary Connaughton CONTRIBUTORS: Penny Gray, Valerie Jordan, Ian Maleney, Jo Linehan, Darragh McCullough, Aisling Meehan, Dean Van Nguyen, Joe Finegan, Mairead McGuinness, Fiona Kelly

Hello...

CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Jane Matthews DESIGN: Alan McArthur, Antoinette Sinclair, Jennifer Reid PHOTOGRAPHY: Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland, Thinkstock, iStock PRODUCTION EXECUTIVE: Nicole Ennis PRODUCTION MANAGER: Mary Connaughton SALES DIRECTOR: Paul Clemenson MANAGING DIRECTOR: Gerry Tynan CHAIRMAN: Diarmaid Lennon Ashville Media Group, Old Stone Building Blackhall Green, Dublin 7 Tel: (01) 432 2200 All rights reserved. Every care has been taken to ensure that the information contained in this magazine is accurate. The publishers cannot, however, accept responsibility for errors or omissions. Reproduction by any means in whole or in part without the permission of the publisher is prohibited. © Ashville Media Group 2016.

ISSN 2009-4310

ONLY

€4.95!

WINTER 2016

OPENING DOORS MINISTER

HIGH SPIRITS

ROAD TRIP

IRELAND’S BOOMING GIN MAKERS

the grass ceiling

9 772009 431000

15

EAR TO THE GROUND IN THE US

9 772009 431000

15

EAR TO THE GROUND WINTER 2016

MICHAEL CREED ON HIS NEW ROLE

IRELAND’S FEMALE FARMERS PLUS ORGANIC FARMING // INDUSTRY REVIEW // TECHNOLOGY // YOUNG IRISH FARMERS // VINTAGE TRACTORS // IRISH FIELD NAMES // FARM SAFETY // BREXIT // THE IRISH PUB // FASHION // FOOD // MOTORING

Welcome to our winter issue of Ear to the Ground magazine, which hits the shelves as Series 24 airs across the country.

As we approach the end of 2016, we reflect back on the various ups and downs experienced in rural Ireland over the past 12 months. In our industry spotlight, we seek the opinions of farming representatives from all walks of life, asking whether this year has been a positive or negative period for Irish farmers across the board, and whether 2017 holds any promise of stabilisation or change for the better.

In our cover story, Ear to the Ground presenter Helen Carroll gives her insight into the increasing role of women on farms across the country, and how there has been a shift in focus from the gender of farmers to their success and innovation on the land. We also profile those women flying the flag for Irish agribusiness and how they are making their mark within the industry.

This has been a difficult year for many of our political representatives in Government, as they face increasing scrutiny from a public under pressure from years of financial hardship. Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed is no different, and he spoke to us about the challenges he faces in his current role, and his plans to revitalise and rejuvenate Irish agriculture.

Over the summer, our own Darragh McCullough travelled to the US with a team from Ear to the Ground, journeying through the states of New York, North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado and Illinois in search of the Irish students and farmers seeking adventure and a better life. Darragh recalls a hectic and enjoyable trip trekking through the agricultural heartlands of America, meeting more than a few characters along the way.

Elsewhere in the magazine, we take a look at the iconic Irish pub and whether it has a future in Ireland, and take a trip back in time in search of Ireland’s ancient farmers. We also check in on the growing demand for Irish gin, the popularity of vintage tractors and Leahy’s Open Farm in Dungourney, Co Cork.

And, in our regular lifestyle section, we have the latest on fashion, food, books, wildlife and plenty more besides.

At Independent Pictures, and on behalf of our colleagues at RTÉ, we hope you enjoy the magazine and continue to tune into the show.

John Cummins Executive Producer Independent Pictures

10/11/2016 13:52 10:29 14/11/2016

ON THE COVER: Helen Carroll PHOTOGRAPHY: Sasko Lazarov/ Photocall Ireland

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CONTENTS

Contents 22

IRELAND’S FEMALE FARMERS

FEATURES

05

EAR TO THE GROUND IN THE USA

05

EAR TO THE GROUND ON THE ROAD Darragh McCullough reports on a recent trip to the USA.

11

INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT Looking back at how farmers have fared in 2016.

17

BYE BYE UK? Mairead McGuinness discusses the fallout from Brexit.

34

WHAT’S IN A NAME? Celebrating the near lost names of Killkenny’s fields.

38

BREXIT BLUES How Britain’s vote to leave the EU is affecting Irish farmers.

42

21

44 FARMING SAFELY One paramedic’s bid to improve safety on Irish farms.

22

IRELAND’S FEMALE FARMERS Ear to the Ground presenter 49 Helen Carroll shares her thoughts on Ireland’s farming women.

28

THE NEXT GENERATION What’s driving our young farmers?

51

THE RISING TIDE OF CYBERCRIME How Irish farmers can become cyber smart.

OPENING DOORS Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed reflects on a challenging time in Government.

56

SHIFTING THE BALANCE We meet several female entrepreneurs who are making their mark in agribusiness.

62

TAKING ACTION ON FLOODING Have any lessons been learned since the flooding events of last December?

66

IMPROVING ACCESS Solicitor Aisling Meehan looks at the recently announced €150m cashflow support fund.

68

THE WOODS BEYOND THE TREES Opportunities and challenges within the forestry sector.

74

KEEPING IT VINTAGE Your guide to the vintage tractor life.

FARMING FUN A visit to Leahy’s Open Farm in Co Cork.

FACE OFF The IFA and ABP Food Group have clashed in 2016.

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CONTENTS

FEATURES 79

BUILDING UP BIOMASS Bioenergy crops could offer huge potential with the right supports in place.

82

THE NATURAL ROUTE Is there a reluctance in Ireland to go organic?

88

STUDY ABROAD Irish farmers have been plying their trade and boosting their skills on massive crop farms across the Atlantic.

96

TASTE OF THE HIMALAYAS Innovation and attention to detail have provided a winning formula for Hannan Meats.

100 COMING UP ROSES Green-fingered entrepreneurs growing flowers sustainably.

104 RURAL RESETTLEMENT Jim Connolly explains the process of helping families find a new life in rural Ireland.

108 FARMING TECHNOLOGY The latest in global technological developments for the agricultural sector.

114 HIGH SPIRITS Ireland’s booming gin market.

120 IRELAND’S FIRST FARMERS Investigating the evidence left behind by our ancient farmers.

128

THE GAA GOES GLOBAL

148

PIE HOUSE

LIFESTYLE 124 RAISING THE BAR The traditional Irish pub is facing challenging times.

128 GOING GLOBAL The GAA World Games helps to foster a sport and culture far outside their traditional heartlands.

130 PERUSING THE WINTER PAPERS A new arts anthology offers an insight into Ireland’s diverse creativity.

134 FRIEND OR FOE? Is the elusive pine marten costing Irish farmers?

138 THE ART OF STORYTELLING Irish documentary filmmakers offer a modern spin on traditional storytelling.

142 ANIMALS FOR AID Bóthar celebrates 25 years in operation this year.

88

FARMING IN THE USA

147 BOOKS 148 FOOD 155 FASHION 160 MOTORING 168 DOWN ON THE FARM All-Ireland winning camogie player Meighan Farrell on her farming background.

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ROAD TRIP

North DAKota

New York

South DAKota Nebraska Colorado

Illinois

road trip

DURING THE SUMMER, EAR TO THE GROUND PACKED ITS BAGS AND HIT THE ROAD, HEADING FOR THE USA. PRESENTER DARRAGH MCCULLOUGH RECOUNTS A WEEK TREKKING AROUND THE COUNTRY, MEETING IRISH EXPATS WHO ARE LIVING AND WORKING ON FARMS DOTTED AROUND THE USA, AND MORE THAN A HANDFUL OF CHARACTERS, ALONG THE WAY.

Day 1 It takes a long time to get into the heart of the US Midwest so we decided to break the journey with an overnight in Chicago, with a couple of shots of the Chicago Board of Trade building where much of the world’s grain prices – including Irish – are set. I took a few shots of the Chicago Park District before an early night – our next flight was at 5am!

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ROAD TRIP

Day 2 Denver is a big airport! Lots of tramping around through various gates and staring at endless electronic timetables, before we finally made it to North Dakota.

From the little airport at Bismarck we had a two-hour drive halfway across the state where we were going to be holed up for a few nights. Already, we were catching a glimpse of the vastness of US agriculture, with grain mountains simply stockpiled along the side of the road awaiting collection.

The first job was to stock up on provisions. The selection of milk caught my attention – what a selection – and that was before you got to the cows’ stuff! Almond, cashew, coconut, soya, the list goes on, but it is an indication of the competition that traditional dairy may face in the future. By the way, prices aren’t that cheap in the US anymore for a European – $2.38 for a US half gallon is the equivalent of €1.14/litre for bog-standard milk.

We met up with John Beardmore that evening – he coordinates a student placement programme for hundreds of foreign students to work in the US each year, including a number of Irish agricultural students. A plan is hatched – it’s a 7am start in the morning. Our first port of call is a tiny one-horse town called Mott. These places often had signs on the way in proclaiming their population – ‘Mott, population 12’.

On asking one evening how they could be so sure of the population when the numbers would surely vary from month to month, a farmer told us “the way it works is that if a girl gets pregnant, a young man usually leaves town!” These small Midwest towns depend almost entirely on the agriculture sector for their existence – there simply isn’t any other industry around. The settlements often got started around the massive grain elevators that dot the train lines that cross the landscape – towering stores where grain is accumulated before being loaded onto trains.

Full tilt The money shot! It was simply awesome to witness the crew at full tilt, and veteran Ear to the Ground cameraman Michael Edge was in his element. The combines clock up over 10,000 acres during the course of a single season – more than they’d manage during a lifetime on most Irish farms. Indeed, by the time the machines have cut their last crop of the season, they are simply sold off, and an order is placed for nine new combines – a tillage farmer’s dream come true!

Lance Frederick The son of a banker, Lance Frederick has obviously excelled at his chosen profession. Both he and his brother started contract harvesting with a single machine back in the 1980s and, through their professionalism, have built up a business that cuts close to 120,000 acres annually.

In the process, the Fredericks have built up their own 8,000 acre farming operation in Kansas. But they’ve worked hard for it – often working seven days a week for weeks on end without getting home.

John Hoey Kildalton Agricultural College alumnus John Hoey is our first graduate. He is from a 350-acre tillage farm back home in Castlebellingham in Louth. Hoey landed out in Alden, Kansas, in April to work with Frederick Harvesting, where the first job was to get a truck driving licence. Then he was all set for the epic harvest journey that takes Lance Frederick’s nine brand-new, top-of-the-range John Deere combines from Kansas nearly 1,000 miles north close to the Canadian border. The 20-man crew are literally on the road, complete with massive mobile homes, fuel and repair trucks, and about $5 million of kick-ass machinery.

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ROAD TRIP

Chasers There are four Irish on the Frederick crew – driving 300hp and 400hp machines and cutting in 600-acre fields is also an experience of a lifetime for these lads.

John O’Brien from Clare, who is on his second season, says that the “work is very easy because it’s fun. The craic with the other lads is great. I’d nearly do it for nothing!” John Hoey’s job was to drive a ‘chaser bin’ – trailers that the combines are able to empty their tanks into on the move. These chaser bins are then able to disgorge their entire contents – 30 tonnes of grain – into a waiting fleet of artic trucks that ferry the grain to the local grain elevator.

Soon enough we were on the move again. Farms could be over 10,000 acres in size so logistics are a big part of making the operation run smoothly. Sunflowers, cereals, maize and alfalfa are all common crops in the region – a far cry from the dust bowl that ravaged the Midwest 75 years previously. Min-till cultivation, combined with a judicious crop rotation, has allowed farmers to once again unleash the potential of the vast plains.

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ROAD TRIP

Day 3 We got through much more filming than we expected during our day in Mott, largely due to the facilitation by Lance. So we decided to add a 300-mile detour (!) to our road trip, heading due south for Mount Rushmore and Rapid City.

Impressive sights...but boy, did those roads go on!

Day 4

Day 5

We were headed for Watertown in South Dakota to where our next story was. On the way, we stumbled across a massive herd of bison – obviously the few that managed to escape Buffalo Bill’s purge in the 1800s that almost made these imposing beasts extinct.

They were roaming part of a huge reserve around the South Dakota Badlands – an otherworldly place of barren ravines and gullies, which is also home to bighorn sheep, coyotes and mule deer.

Sightseeing time was over – it was back to business. Our next big story was that of Rodney Elliott, a Fermanagh dairy farmer who upped sticks 10 years ago to come out to ‘the open country’ to follow his dream of milking ever more cows. “When I started out milking 23 cows in a tie-stall byre in the 1980s, I was dreaming of this,” he said as he showed us around his 4,500 cow dairy enterprise. In 2014, the operation made a clear profit of well over $5 million and even this year, when prices have been much lower, he expects to be in the black. However, it wasn’t all plain sailing.

“The rumour going back home when we decided to sell the 200-acre farm and 150 cow herd was that we’d got into financial trouble or that my marriage was in bother,” the ebullient Northerner says with a laugh. “And two years after we arrived we hit a serious price downturn that saw us lose over $1m. But my bank manager was fine with it – “you’re losing half the amount the average farmer is!” A total of 50 staff work on the farm, with the milking parlour doing three milkings daily, 365 days a year. The vast majority of staff are Latino – Guatemalan, Mexican, Nicaraguan, etc.

“This is seen as dirty work so most Americans aren’t interested,” admitted Rodney. In addition, he’s up against a situation where South Dakota has full employment, with fracking in recent times having created additional employment for men that are willing to get their hands dirty.

Darragh with UCD Ag Science student Yvonne Mullins and Rodney Elliott.

RIGHT: The Elliott operation

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ROAD TRIP

Day 7 Edita Birnkrant

Day 6 Having spent a whole day on the Drumgoon dairy farm, it was time to head for our last destination – New York City.

However, it was easier said than done, with a last-minute cancellation of our flight from Sioux Falls forcing us to make a mad dash for Omaha airport in the neighbouring state of Nebraska...we finally made it to Times Square in downtown NYC at about midnight. Glaring large among the hordes of advertising boards was a ‘be fair, be vegan’ ad – a far cry from the Cowboy Bait and Ammo billboards in the Midwest!

Conor McHugh

You have to experience NYC to appreciate just how many Irish crop up all over the place. Among the trades they’ve made their own is the horse and carriage business at Central Park. This was under serious threat in recent times when the current mayor, Bill de Blasio, swore that he would ban the trade on the basis that it was cruel to animals. The Irish fought a serious media war to win the hearts and minds of the public, and roped in megastars like Liam Neeson to support their cause. Conor McHugh is a Leitrim man that has made a career out of the horse and carriage business and he took us on a tour to show us how well the horses are treated. We even got to see inside the stables down by the Hudson where the horses are accommodated for 47 weeks of the year – when they’re not on their mandatory vacation on a farm in Pennsylvania! However, animal rights campaigners are still not happy. Edita Birnkrant of Friends of Animals maintains that there will always be a welfare problem if animals are subjected to the noise and chaos of the streets of New York. She wants the jarveys (coach drivers) to switch to offering an electric bike system for tourists, and continues to campaign against the age-old trade. Finally it was time to go home and back to reality. That evening we trudged onto a plane, weary but satisfied that we had three good stories in the can for the folks ‘back home’.

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www.aviationreg.ie 10 EAR TO THE GROUND

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INDUSTRY

Industry Snapshot THIS YEAR HAS BEEN A DIFFICULT ONE FOR MANY IRISH FARMERS, FROM LOW PRICES TO THE FALLOUT FROM BREXIT. EAR TO THE GROUND SPOKE WITH SEVERAL REPRESENTATIVES WITHIN THE VARIOUS FARMING INDUSTRIES TO DISCOVER MORE ABOUT HOW IRELAND’S FARMERS HAVE FARED THROUGHOUT 2016.

Issues ranging from a lack of access to finance and low prices to poor weather conditions and high feed costs have plagued many Irish farmers this year. The UK’s vote to leave the UK back in June has certainly done the industry no favours, with a severe blow dealt to Ireland’s mushroom industry in particular − several mushroom farmers have gone out of business.

Ireland’s reliance on the UK as a key export destination for our produce means that the future for many farming enterprises is very much at stake. “With 40 per cent of our agri-food exports, worth €5bn, destined for the UK market, it simply cannot be overstated how important it is for the Irish agri-food sector that as free as possible market access to the UK is maintained,” said IFA President Joe Healy. So where do Ireland’s agricultural sectors stand at the end of the year?

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INDUSTRY

SPOTLIGHT

SHEEP Dairy

For the most part, 2016 has been a tough year for dairy farmers, with prices hitting some of their lowest levels since 2009, at a time when a lot of farmers are exposed due to expansion and investment. “It’s widely accepted that the average cost of production of milk in Ireland is about 27c/l and the price being paid by the co-ops, the base price, is 21c/l. So it was a very tough year,” says Darragh McCullough (pictured), dairy farmer and Ear to the Ground presenter.

Brexit is also making its mark – the dairy industry is very exposed as 60 per cent of its total cheese exports enter the UK market. There is some light at the end of the tunnel – prices have recently turned a corner, rebounding around 10 per cent in recent months, and the hope is that this will continue. Though analysts indicate that production is unlikely to grow substantially, with world markets due to remain weak, many Irish dairy farmers will be aiming for 30c/l in 2017. “2016 was a pretty kind year actually in terms of grass growth. We had a very kind autumn, very mild autumn, which meant that there was higher than average levels of grass produced during that period which of course helps to reduce feed bills − that’s one of the key costs on dairy farms,” Darragh explains. “Guys were able to produce effectively cheap milk in the back end of the year, and if we got a year in 2017 that played out the same way, if that was on offer now I think that most farmers would take it.”

SPOT LIGHT

Patrick and Corali Frankel at an IOFGA talk

Lamb prices have stabilised in the latter months of the year, with the Muslim festival of Eid in September provided a boost in demand, though they have risen from a low point. Brexit and the fluctuating sterling is the main influence on sheep prices – when the pound is weak more lambs and ewes are being imported from Northern Ireland. “Feed prices are back from where they were last year. The year has been variable − there has been good grass growth and there has been plenty of grass in the back end of the summer. It has been a dry and mild winter so far. Ground conditions have been good and lambs have been thriving well,” says Co Kildare sheep and beef farmer Shane Callaghan.

“For the future, there’s grants available there for sheep fencing and sheep handling, so it shows that the Government is interested in modernisation of the sheep industry. It seems to be holding its own compared to beef at the moment, though not as good as dairy.

People are getting ready for the lambing season in the spring and trying to manage how much feed they have for the winter, and trying to get the ewes in as good a condition as they can. I would be hopeful that there would be a good crop of lambs in the spring of 2017.”

ORGANIC

According to the Irish Organic Farmers & Growers Association (IOFGA), the organic sector has performed strongly in 2016, with an increase in organic food sales of 25 per cent compared to 2016. “It is extremely encouraging to see this explosion in consumer confidence, and growing demand for organic food. The unprecedented number of farmers who converted to organic farming in 2015, and are looking at potential markets for their products, are obviously happy with this growth,” says Grace Maher, Development Officer with the IOFGA. “However, the absence of an Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) that was open to new entrants in 2016 has resulted in farmers who wish to convert to organic farming simply not having the resources to do so. In order to redress this issue, and more importantly to meet the market demand for Irish organic food, we need to increase the number of certified organic farmers in Ireland. Therefore in 2017, IOFGA would like to see a new targeted tranche of the OFS open to facilitate this. The European organic market is currently valued at €24bn, and it would be foolish if Ireland were to continue to ignore this expanding market as we are ideally placed to supply that market.”

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INDUSTRY

SPOTLIGHT

PIG

Cattle/Beef

Fluctuating factory prices and Brexit are chief on the minds of Ireland’s cattle farmers. According to IFA president Joe Healy, beef farming is facing an income crisis that must be resolved through increased factory prices, calling for a price of at least €4/kg required for grass beef and €4.50kg for winter beef. Angus Woods, IFA Livestock Chairperson (pictured), echoed that call. “Demand for beef in the UK remains very strong. We are in the high demand Christmas procurement period, and trade has picked up,” he said. “It is simply not acceptable for processors to return an unviable price to our farmers at this time. Prices must be restored to viable levels; factories must demand significantly higher prices from their British retailer customers and pass these increases directly back to farmers.” Healy also noted the need for a strong Government response to Brexit. “With the forecast for an additional 100,000 head of cattle next year, a strong live export trade is vital for calves, weanlings, stores and finished cattle. Live exports are essential for competition and to support market balance and viable prices, as well as additional market outlets,” he said. Issues surrounding competition have also been raised, particularly by the IFA – the merger between the Larry Goodman-owned ABP Food Group and Slaney Meats was recently approved, while Kepak’s planned acquisition of John Kelly Meats is due to go ahead pending approval by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.

PROFILE: industry

INNOVATION

Overall it has been a relatively positive year for the Irish pig sector, with prices picking up somewhat towards the end of the year, though they suffered a dip around November. Looking forward, there is hope that international markets will provide a boost for pig farmers. “China has been the big positive for the market in the last couple of years. The negative over the market is the Russian ban and that stopped Europe exporting 25 per cent of its pigmeat into Russia. That led to bad prices across Europe in terms of pigmeat,” says Pat O’Flaherty, IFA Pigs Chairperson (pictured). “So what’s happened then in recent years is that China normally would have bought from the States, but they’ve started buying huge quantities from Europe, and that’s creating a massive amount of demand.”

Alongside their international counterparts, many Irish companies are leading the way in improving agriculture using technology. Progressive Genetics, for example, is deeply involved in cattle breeding progress and research. The breeding programme company, the National Cattle Breeding Centre, works closely with Teagasc for research. The main aim of the dairy programme in recent years is cow fertility and longevity.

In 2016 the Teagasc Next Generation herd showed a 2 per cent empty rate and the top sires have passed the €200 barrier for fertility index. It is estimated that a cow with €100 fertility EBI will have the ideal calving interval. So the question is being asked: Is the fertility problem solved? While the short answer is ‘not quite’, there is enough momentum now to place more emphasis on health, production and environmental traits.

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INDUSTRY

Tillage

Tillage farmers have struggled again this year, and many across the country are fighting to survive. A difficult spring was followed by a mediocre summer, though rainfall in June and July affected yields. “Of course for some people, August and September were even worse.

There’s about 400 farmers seriously affected with partial or complete loss of income,” says Liam Dunne, IFA Grain Chair (pictured). “There’s been a good month of October and people have sown a lot of crop, as much as normal, which was a bit of a surprise.” Though efforts have been made to reduce fertiliser prices, most other costs have not reduced much, if at all.

In a climate where most tillage farmers have very little or no money to spend, Dunne is looking forward to the introduction of TAMS III early in the new year, to support those tillage farmers in serious trouble. “Things are a little tighter than they would have been in previous years. A lot will depend on what kind of a winter we get and how well crops on the continent come out of the winter,” he explains. “I’ve never seen people struggle so hard to actually pay bills and keep the show on the road. I don’t know what a fifth harvest like this would do to people. I would hate to see where people wouldn’t tend to be optimistic, that there would be any shadow of depression out there. It’s going to be a long winter for a lot of people. People should seek help if necessary, it’s important to talk to people.”

SPOT LIGHT

HORTICULTURE

This year has been good for garden centres, but with a much slower rate of growth than last year, according to Jim Clarke, of Johnstown Garden Centre, Naas, and director of the Royal Irish Horticultural Society. “The rate of growth this season seems to vary from 0 per cent to about 7-8 per cent compared to about twice that last year. Larger centres are performing well, smaller centres not so well. Demand for grow your own fruit and vegetable plants remains steady,” Clarke explains. “Colour is the main selling item in retail, with items like general shrubs in decline and perennial plants and bedding plants in good growth.” Strong demand remains for large plants for screening purposes. “Earlier in the year the Irish Specialist Nurseries Association’s Rare and Special Plant Fair returned to Russborough for a second time, in recognition of the RHSI’s 200th anniversary, and reported strong trade. The RHSI plans to capitalise on this success in 2017,” Clarke adds.

SPOT LIGHT

POULTRY

SPOTLIGHT

FORESTRY & HILL FARMING Budget 2017 unveiled a boost for the forestry sector, with €111.6m available for forestry development in 2017, while Minister Michael Creed announced the opening of a financial aid scheme for landowners whose plantations were damaged by ‘storm force winds’ between December 2013 and February 2014.

Elsewhere it has been a mixed year for many hill farmers according to the Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA). “GLAS has had its issues for the majority of farmers and has raised a lot of problems.

We here at the INHFA are trying to find appropriate solutions to these problems and indeed we have recently learnt that GLAS is just a grazing plan and will end after its five year term.

Designated land has also been a massive issue, especially the 39 Actions Requiring Consent and the restriction under which farmers have to abide by on said designations,” the organisation says. “Livestock prices are also at an all-time low for the hill farmer’s market and with Brexit being brought into sharp focus the market for hill lamb and cattle is set to get even worse.

The majority of commonage farmers provide a specialised animal and unfortunately the market at present does not recognise said animal.”

The poultry industry has experienced a positive year in 2016. Alongside TAMS coming into play, prices have increased for poultry farmers, with huge demand for chicken and eggs. “We have some things to face down in 2017, but we will handle that. The truth of it is that we are in a good enough space, there’s a huge demand for poultry, there’s a huge demand for eggs.

There was a big expansion in the commercial eggs sector, in enriched cages, and actually the market has absorbed all of that,” says IFA Poultry Chair, Nigel Renaghan (pictured). “Eggs are considered to be a superfood now, so it’s creating a huge demand for eggs. The free range is doing very well and the organic eggs are even being exported out to the United Arab Emirates. It’s a positive 12 months, people see a future in what we’re doing.”

14 EAR TO THE GROUND

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14/04/2016 12:49:41 24/11/2016 15:14 18/11/2016 14:50

COLUMN

Hello Divorce,

Bye, Bye UK?

THE BREXIT PROCESS WILL BE A COMPLEX, DIFFICULT AFFAIR FOR ALL CONCERNED, INCLUDING BUSINESSES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BORDER, WRITES MAIREAD MCGUINNESS MEP, VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT. Divorces are usually messy affairs. Rarely do both parties emerge unscathed or better off. Brexit is effectively a divorce in process, following years of doubts about the relationship, mainly from the UK side.

Those doubts escalated into an all out war of words during the referendum debate.

Lies, false promises and statistics were used to persuade UK voters that leaving the EU would free them from the shackles of Brussels bureaucrats and give them the freedom

to be great again. Echoes of the most recent US election campaign.

The UK is under enormous pressure to spell out how it plans to leave and what sort of future relationship it wants with the EU. Prime Minister Theresa May has said she will initiate the leave process by the end of March 2017. The clock will then start ticking towards a two-year deadline for completion.

EU Council President Donald Tusk has

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COLUMN

Mairead McGuinness

“THIS HAS HUGE IMPLICATIONS FOR THE AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD SECTOR, MUCH OF WHICH RELIES ON ALL-ISLAND TRADE AND BUSINESS.” MAIREAD SAYS:

said there is only one Brexit possible – a hard Brexit. Membership of the EU brings benefits and responsibilities. The clear message is that you cannot pick and choose.

Representing the border constituency of Midlands North West I’m acutely aware of the impact of Brexit on the region and on my constituents. Already the fall in the value of sterling has hit our agri-food sector hard. Sterling fell to a 30-year low following the Brexit result, and has fallen further since.

About 17 per cent of total Irish exports go to the UK. It’s the largest single country destination, although it’s less significant than it used to be. In the 1970s, over half of Irish exports went there. The agri-food sector is, however, particularly exposed, making up about a third of Ireland’s UK-bound exports. Almost half of Irish beef exports go to the UK. Already a number of mushroom producers, particularly dependent upon the UK market, have gone out of business.

And there are other valid concerns.

The border with Northern Ireland is invisible. Many in my constituency work in Northern Ireland. Farming is not restricted by the border, with significant trade in both directions. Northern farmers buy cattle at marts in the south and large volumes of milk produced in the north are processed in the south.

So what will happen to all of this

when the UK leaves the EU? Theresa May told her Conservative Party that her Government will pursue a plan to gain control over immigration and no longer be subject to rulings by the EU Court of Justice. While her Government is not acknowledging it, those two objectives are incompatible with membership of the single market and of the customs union.

The remaining 27 member states have indicated that they will not accept a member of the single market that does not accept free movement of labour. And leaving the customs union – which within allows barrier-free trade with no customs checks and outside imposes a common tariff – will be necessary if the UK insists upon them.

The UK’s objectives have serious implications for Ireland – especially along the border, which will become an external EU border. Political will exists to maintain the Common Travel Area and with it the border that has been made invisible through the peace process. Both the British and Irish governments say keeping the existing scenario is a top priority, but the legal realities are trickier. The British government has spoken of the possibility of moving its passport checks to Dublin post-Brexit, but understandably Irish citizens and the Government may be unwilling to consider this. In addition, the UK leaving the customs union implies that some form of customs checks would be

required at the Irish border. Even if they were predominantly electronic systems the increase in bureaucracy would be significant. This has huge implications for the agricultural and food sector, much of which relies on all-island trade and business. Drinks company Diageo − behind Guinness and Baileys − has, for example, two sites in Dublin and two around Belfast, with constant movement across the border.

The settlement reached between the EU and the UK will determine the shape of the external EU border on the island of Ireland. Switzerland is an instructive example. It has a unique relationship with the EU, governed by a large series of bilateral treaties. It has no official land border controls with Germany but it is not part of the customs union. Both countries carry out some checks, even if these take the form of mobile border units. There are strict rules on the amount of food and drink Swiss and German citizens are allowed to take over the border. Switzerland must also accept many EU rules, including the freedom of movement of EU citizens. Its own referendum on restricting immigration, passed narrowly in February 2014, has resulted in a stand-off with the EU. The EU at points restricted Swiss scientists’ access to Horizon 2020 research funding.

Another worrying prospect for Ireland was the EU’s recent difficulties in finalising a trade deal with Canada. Known as CETA, it stuttered to a halt in October, blocked by the Walloon regional parliament in Belgium, though it has since passed. Had it not been passed, this would have seriously undermined the EU’s trade policy – if a deal could not be ratified with as close a partner as Canada, other countries would not be inclined to go through long years of negotiations and risk falling at the last hurdle.

At the same time the CETA situation placed questions on the EU-UK agreement. The UK appears to be indicating that it wants a bespoke agreement, but the EU’s ability to conclude such an agreement with minimal fuss and in a reasonable timeframe appears to be in doubt.

So in a few years’ time Ireland could be facing a situation where the Irish border hinders all-island business and trade, and new trade barriers hinder exports to a UK opening up to competition from global agricultural producers like Canada, New Zealand and Australia. Time will tell.

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30/11/2016 14:38

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24/11/2016 13:34 15:10 11/10/2016

SAFETY

The farm is one of our most dangerous workplace environments – 15 people have lost their lives on Irish farms this year alone. According to the Health & Safety Authority (HSA), “a large proportion of all fatal workplace accidents occur in agriculture, even though a small proportion of the workforce is employed in farming.

The level of farm accidents is not decreasing. Similar accidents occur each year.”

So, what would you do if you were faced with a accident or injury on the farm?

The Horan family farm in Kerry hosted a farm safety and emergency response demonstration earlier this year, part of an international conference for emergency service responders, the EMS Gathering.

The event showcased the correct response to a range of incidents from a person caught in a baling machine to someone overcome by slurry fumes.

Alongside the National Ambulance Service and international first responders, the National Air Ambulance was there on the day to explain the part it plays in responding to emergencies in rural Ireland.

“Medics and paramedics, when they attend a farm they don’t know what to expect. They might come on a farmer who’s gored by a bull. How do they go into that field safely to attend to the farmer but not put themselves in danger?

If they attended, let’s say, a farmer who has been caught in a PTO...I mean most normal people wouldn’t know what a PTO is, wouldn’t know the strength of a power take off, and that it can literally take off a person’s arm, if they’re lucky,” said Dr John Horan, who appeared on the programme during the current season.

It wasn’t just a learning experience for

Embracing

Safe Farming

FARM SAFETY IS AS IMPORTANT AS EVER THESE DAYS IN ORDER TO PREVENT SERIOUS ACCIDENTS AND DEATHS ON IRISH FARMS.

medical personnel, however. It’s often family, friends or neighbours who reach the scene of an accident first, and farmers and farm contractors were among those who attended the event. HSA Senior Inspector Pat Griffin was forthright about the need for farmers to be aware of what could happen on the farm.

“If farmers really want to prevent the deaths that are happening all too often on Irish farms, they need to deal with safety around their tractors, machinery and livestock,” he stated. “Get those things right and I think we can stop an awful lot of death on Irish farms.”

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Paramedics practice responding to a high fall; Simulating an incident with a person trapped beneath a trailer; Machinery can be deadly on the farm ; Darragh McCullough with farmer Tommy Moynihan, who was involved in a PTOrelated accident

Filming at the scene of the demonstrations

Know Heart Failure Despite being a common, serious, but manageable condition, with around 90,000 people living with it in Ireland today, the signs and symptoms of heart failure may not be very well known. That’s something the Know Heart Failure Now campaign, supported by Novartis Ireland Ltd. and the Heart Failure Patient Alliance, intends to address, launched at the National Ploughing Championships this year.

“The term heart failure can be frightening and is often misunderstood. By bringing attention to this condition, the ‘Know Heart Failure Now’ campaign aims to increase the public’s awareness and understanding of heart failure in order to help people take action earlier and thereby improve their outlook,” said Professor Ken McDonald, Consultant Cardiologist and National Clinical Lead for Heart Failure.

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COVER STORY

Ireland’s Female Farmers THE PROFILE OF IRISH FARMERS IS CHANGING AS THE YEARS TICK BY, WITH MORE AND MORE WOMEN BECOMING INVOLVED IN THE SECTOR. BUT WHY IS THIS THE CASE, AND IS IT HAPPENING FAST ENOUGH? WE SPOKE WITH EAR TO THE GROUND PRESENTER HELEN CARROLL TO DISCOVER MORE ABOUT THIS GROWING TREND.

A

griculture, both in Ireland and across the globe, has witnessed huge changes in recent years.

Today, Irish farmers grow crops and raise livestock bound for markets as diverse as Barbados and Bahrain. Drones fly overhead, monitoring crops for water shortage, plant size and threats. Interest in alternative enterprises is rising, such as bioenergy crops like short rotation coppice willow and miscanthus.

The make-up of Ireland’s farming community is also evolving. Farming may once have been viewed as a maleonly enclave, with women relegated to the role of assistant or housewife but, in recent years, more and more women are farming in their own right, milking cows, sowing crops and making hay. Ear to the Ground presenter Helen Carroll is one of a number of people who have observed and are encouraged by this growing trend.

“I’ve been on the programme 13 years, and the profile of farmers has changed a lot in that time. There was a time when possibly the fact that a farmer was a woman was the story, but that’s not the story any more. The fact that they’re women is by the by. An awful lot of the farmers doing quite innovative or exciting things at the moment are young female farmers,” she explains. “We’ve met some amazing women who have been doing it for years and years. In this series I’ve met Eauvaun Carmody, who was an artist who dealt with antique furniture.

She ended up buying an old castle down

in County Tipperary, and now has the biggest herd of Dexter cattle in Europe, if not the world. There are some quite amazing women doing amazing things. I think that’s the best thing about it − the issue or the story is no longer that they’re women, the story is what they’re doing on their farms. It’s no longer a story that there’s a woman running a farm, or a woman farming full-time, or a woman doing something exciting on the farm. It’s what she’s doing, not who she is, that is the story now.”

So why is this the case? Is it simply that farming as a sector is moving with the times? Helen sees a variety of reasons, ranging from a greater desire to get involved to a perception that there are less barriers in the way. “Women are looking at something and saying ‘Why can’t I do that too?’ In a way they’re role models now for younger girls coming up through the ranks,” she notes. “You’d see that in a lot of ag courses, particularly something like Ag Science in UCD. If you look at veterinary, there are now more girls doing veterinary than boys in college in Ireland.

That’s a reflection of where we’re going, I think. It is no longer seen as a challenge or a difficulty to make a living or a livelihood for yourself in the country, off the land.”

Take Esther Walsh, who manages a dairy herd of around 800 cows on a farm outside Lismore in Co Waterford, and featured on the programme last year.

Originally from Rathgormack, Esther grew up on a 70-acre suckler farm, and she gained an appreciation for animals

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COVER STORY

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Helen’s Perspective Though she works as a freelance journalist when she’s not presenting Ear to the Ground, Helen’s family background is in farming. Her father came from a dairy farm in Lisdowney, Co Kilkenny and studied ag science before taking up a post as an agricultural advisor with Teagasc, which was known as An Chomhairle Oiliúna Talmhaíochta/The Agricultural Training Council (ACOT) at the time. So, could she see herself farming in the future?

“No, it’s hard work,” she says with a laugh. “I didn’t marry a farmer and I didn’t grow up on a farm, so my options were somewhat limited! I’m happy to report on them and visit them and have a look at the hard work they’re doing.” That’s not to say, however, that she’s disconnected from the land. “We’re making the most of what we have,” she adds. “We bought three acres here in Co Kilkenny and we built a house on it. We’ve got a polytunnel and we’re growing fruit and veg. We’re making use out of the land, but I could never see myself having the stamina or the bravery to try and make a living out of it.”

PHOTO: SASKO LAZAROV/PHOTOCALL IRELAND

Helen Carroll

and the outdoors. Following the death of her father they leased out the family farm, but Esther was still involved to a small extent, checking on the animals with the new tenant. A neighbouring dairy farmer took Esther on to help with the milking at the age of 14, and she was hooked. When she finished secondary school she followed her dream and attended agricultural college before heading for New Zealand, the Mecca of farming countries.

“I wanted to go and see it for myself.

I was very lucky with the first farm I landed on, it was a 700 cow family-run farm and I really got on well there. All of a sudden I could see that farming was a popular career to be in when I was in New Zealand and wasn’t so frowned upon,” she said. “I really enjoyed it, it was a massive experience. You see there’s more than one way to do it – it wasn’t just the way Dad had always done it.”

Esther has come a long way since.

Managing a farm of this size is no easy task – overseeing a huge herd but also a number of staff members, including several students who arrive every year from the nearby Kildalton College. “It’s a totally different system, once you go away from the one-man operation, you get bigger cow numbers, the workload increases, the detail – you have to pay more attention to the detail,” she explained.

The process of cultural evolution may well be playing its part. Though larger families were once the norm in Ireland, this trend has reversed – from an average of four children in 1970 to two or less today. Fewer children usually mean fewer sons, meaning that these days a daughter is as likely to take over the family farm.

But perhaps financial necessity also has a role to play. Helen notes that a lot of women involved in farming tend to be new entrants into the sector, perhaps as a result of the recession. “There was a time when the role of a woman who married into the farm was to bring in money from an off-farm job, and maybe as those

HELEN SAYS:

“THERE WAS A TIME WHEN POSSIBLY THE FACT THAT A FARMER WAS A WOMAN WAS THE STORY, BUT THAT’S NOT THE STORY ANY MORE.”

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COVER STORY

Esther Walsh

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COVER STORY

off-farm jobs dried up they looked at the resources they had on the farm and figured out a way of making a living out of those,” she posits.

However, sometimes it can happen almost by chance. Last year, Helen tells me, she met Leonie Vella, a young woman who designed kitchens and married a sheep farmer in Wicklow. Before the economic crash her husband had farmed part-time, working in construction to supplement his income, and went back to farming full-time when the recession hit and the country’s building sites closed down. “When he went back to building when the construction industry began to pick up again she found herself farming full-time as a sheep farmer, having no experience at all,” Helen recalls. “She embraced it, and seemed to love what she was doing. She wasn’t doing anything different, she was farming in the way I’m sure her husband had been farming before her, but she was somebody who, without planning to do so, she ended up [in sheep farming].”

The need or desire to find an alternative route to balancing the books doesn’t always result in the development of a traditional farming enterprise. Take blogger Lorna Sixsmith, also known as the Irish Farmerette (much to the chagrin of some women who prefer simply to be referred to as ‘farmers’), one of a number of people who have built a brand out of cataloguing life on an Irish farm. Living on a dairy farm in Ireland’s south east, Lorna self-published her first book Would You Marry a Farmer? with the help of a crowdfunding campaign back in 2013, and has gone from strength to strength, releasing two more farming-themed books and maintaining a regular blog on all aspects of farming life.

Then there’s Leona Kane, who moved to her husband Richard’s farm near Limavady in Derry in 2005. Faced with a lack of ingredients one evening, they used some rapeseed oil originally earmarked to make biodiesel to fry some steaks for dinner. And so the award-winning Broighter Gold Rapeseed Oil was born, named for the Broighter Hoard of Iron Age gold artefacts found on the family farm at the turn of the 19th century, and which is now supplied to a number of top hotels and restaurants.

However, despite this growing trend, there’s a lot done, more to do, to borrow a phrase. According to a recent report published by the Department of Agriculture, only 13 per cent of Irish farmers today are female, compared to a figure of 36 per cent in Spain. They’re also under-represented when it comes to

Lorna Sixsmith

farming organisations. Irish co-ops, for example, are dominated by men at board level. Michael Spellman, Chairman of the Irish Co-operative Society Organisations (ICOS) has recently affirmed the need to involve increasing numbers of women in decision-making, though he also noted a difficulty in finding women willing to step up to the mark. The same can be said of the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA), which counts just one female member on its executive committee.

“It’s not yet fully reflected in the IFA, which is something we’re looking at for this series of Ear to the Ground. There are very few women represented within the higher ranks of the IFA. There are no female county chairs (according to IFA figures). On the executive committee of the IFA there are 54 officers and only one of them is a woman,” Helen explains.

“That’s something that, while on the ground and on the farms that we visit we’re seeing the profile of farmers change, the IFA hasn’t caught up with. I don’t doubt that it will, and we’re not saying that it’s their sole responsibility.”

Helen notes that there is an element of personal responsibility for women to put themselves forward, to get out there and become more involved with farming and farming organisations. “It’s a case of don’t

wait to be invited, just put yourself forward and put yourself out there.

I think inevitably as we do see more women being involved in farming it will happen, it’s just a pity that it doesn’t happen a little bit faster,” she adds.

But is the involvement of greater numbers of women in farming something that should be actively pushed, or should we sit back and allow the process of cultural change to take hold of its own accord? “It will happen, inevitably, over time. Just look at the number of young women coming through our Ag Science and Green Cert courses,” Helen asserts. “As we see more and more women managing, running and owning farms, then it will encourage other women to follow suit.

It will also, hopefully, help the older generation of farmers realise that their daughters are just as capable and as interested in taking over the reins as their sons are. But to properly address the gender imbalance in our farming organisations, we may need to see a bit of encouragement, a gentle push in the right direction. Whether that’s by imposing gender quotas or simply taking practical steps to make it easier for women to get involved remains to be seen.”

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09/12/2016 15:46

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PEOPLE

Young on Stock the Farm THE AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY HAS EXPERIENCED A WEALTH OF BOTH POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE CHANGES IN RECENT YEARS. ORLA CONNOLLY SPEAKS TO THE YOUNG BLOOD OF THE INDUSTRY TO SEE IF THEY THINK THERE CAN BE A PROFITABLE FUTURE ON THE FARM.

Sean Mannion CO GALWAY Twenty-five year old Galway farmer Sean Mannion believes there is a viable future in farming, having recently begun his own sheep enterprise. After studying agriculture and environmental management, along with receiving a Master’s in Agricultural Extension, Mannion has been focused on forging a successful career within the farming community.

Even though the industry is currently facing an austere period, Mannion feels there is room for prosperity in Ireland. “I think there are plenty of opportunities out there for the younger generation with many incentives, for example 60 per cent grant aid on TAMS schemes, stampduty exemptions etc.,” he says. “The option of partnerships can also be looked at as this offers great opportunities to the young farmer while

also having a predecessor in the partnership or smaller farms where they can combine resources to form a viable farming business.” Initiatives such as these have allowed farmers like Mannion to expand their relatively young businesses more quickly than expected. Thanks to grant aid, Mannion himself recently purchased a sheep race and weighing scales which will reduce the labour input when weighing, dosing, drafting and during the routine checking of the flock.

“This is subject to grant aid at 60 per cent and this will last me for years to come. If I wasn’t getting the grant I possibly wouldn’t be buying it for a few years yet,” he explains. Even still, there are roadblocks facing young farmers hoping to get a foothold in the agricultural industry, and Mannion points to the difficulty in securing the

The common stereotype associated with an Irish farmer is the image of an ageing countryman, diligently working the land on his farm since boyhood, undoubtedly topped with silver hair and a worn-out tweed hat. While this image certainly offers a sense of reassurance and familiarity to those of us who buy and use their produce, it does little to inspire the younger generation of university educated men and women to enter the profession. Farming as a career has the potential to reap substantial rewards but can be demanding on time and resources and, like any occupation, offers no guarantee of success. Entering the profession can also prove extremely difficult for those who aren’t born into farming life. The difficulty in accessing land and suitable financing has routinely created barriers for young professionals starting up their own farming enterprise. While the Government has been attempting to make farming a more appealing path in recent years, the question is, can farming be an attractive proposition for the next generation?

level of funding required for start-up farmers, even with a respectable five-year business plan. This difficulty in accessing funding is echoed throughout the farming community and it’s causing considerable consequences for young landless farmers hoping to kick-start their careers. The farming industry has become a place for forward thinking young business professionals, looking to invest their time and money in a worthwhile venture. In light of this, Mannion feels that a strong but equally realistic business plan is the core element of success in this sector. “Experience is very important and one needs to have a business plan in place for any farming business. A robust business plan needs to be in place,” he explains. “No one will become a millionaire overnight but with critical thinking and planning combined with experience, a sizeable profit can be made from many farming enterprises.”

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PEOPLE

PHOTO: DAVID RUFFLES

Sean Mannion

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PEOPLE

Andrew McShea

Kevin Moran CO GALWAY

Andrew McShea CO DONEGAL Donegal native Andrew McShea was raised on a family dairy farm in Ballyshannon. In recent years they’ve made the transition from dairy to suckler farming, rearing pedigree Parthenaise cattle and more recently a small flock of Kerry Hill ewes. McShea is keenly aware of the challenges currently facing the community but feels farming is a vital sector to the overall Irish economy. “Honestly, I think the farming industry hasn’t begun the recovery process yet but it has, at the same time, kept the economy going,” he tells me. McShea recognises government incentives geared towards the agricultural community, yet feels that more realistic plans need to be cultivated in order for farming to become an attractive proposition for future generations, along with helping financially strained farmers make a profit. “The incentives for younger farmers to either start or continue farming are not sufficient. Overheads heavily outweigh the price received for produce,” says McShea. “Government schemes and grant aid are flawed, and reduced or delayed payments and red tape are the norm for those struggling to survive.” Aside from rearing Parthenaise cattle, McShea is also a qualified mechanic. Being skilled in multiple areas isn’t uncommon in the farming community and McShea notes that many farmers find it difficult to survive on their farming income alone. “Farming is an attractive career, however not as a sole occupation,” he says. McShea states that this is due to the fluctuating and unpredictable factors that can affect farm growth and profit.

As he explains, “weather conditions, produce prices, department inspections and overheads all reflect heavily on the farm income, which fluctuates easily and determines your farm profit.” For young farmers hoping to starting out in the industry, McShea recommends getting into sheep farming. “I’d recommend the sheep sector as there is a quicker turnover and any losses suffered are substantially lower than within the suckler industry,” he says. “As I have started sheep farming within the last two years, I hope to use lamb sales to supplement my farm income while rearing pedigree calves/heifers. I hope to sell my organic lambs locally also.”

Twenty-three year old farmer Kevin Moran runs a 200-acre dairy farm in Co Galway and was recently announced as the FBD Young Farmer of the Year 2016, thanks to his drive to succeed in the agricultural industry. Moran’s career hasn’t always been smooth sailing, as early on he realised that running his family farm wasn’t a viable option and like many landless farmers, had to relocate from his home in Co Mayo to suit his needs. During this process he, like many young farmers attempting to kick-start their own enterprise, he experienced difficulty in securing financing for his new venture and this raised considerable barriers to his career. “I was declined finance by the banks nine times, initially due to not having a good enough plan,” he says.

Moran immediately dismisses the old-fashioned stereotype of the uneducated farmer.

As the current agricultural sector rapidly populates itself with farmers who are not only knowledgeable about their farm, but also financially literate with a good grasp on best business practice, he feels it is the ideal career for young entrepreneurs. “I would argue that the top 10 per cent of farmers in Ireland are some of

the best businesspeople in the country,” says Moran. “If you enjoy working with animals, enjoy the outdoors, being your own boss and aspire to build genuine wealth then yes, I would say farming is an attractive career path.” There are also a number of incentives for the dairy farming industry to flourish, such as the abolition of milk quotas and tax-free land initiatives of up to €40,000 per year. Moran notes that this results in land becoming available to the young farmer without the burden of high land purchase debt, just one of the many advantages of farming in Ireland. “We have the soils, climate and knowledge through extension services and research to be the most profitable dairy farmers in the world. It is a very exciting time for dairying in Ireland,” he explains. The FBD Young Farmer of the Year competition is just one of the initiatives highlighting the entrepreneurial spirit within the farming community.

After being named the 2016 winner, Moran couldn’t be more honoured. “It is every farmer’s All-Ireland medal really so it meant the world,” he says. “To see the calibre of all the other finalists and to think I was picked from them, was hard to believe.”

Kevin Moran

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PEOPLE

David Mulrooney

David Mulrooney CO KILKENNY After completing his degree in Agricultural and Animal Science at the University of Aberystwyth in Wales, David Mulrooney returned to his home county of Kilkenny and secured 145 acres of farm land. He currently uses this land to run both dairy and pedigree beef herds. The recent abolition of quotas has lead to Mulrooney scaling back his beef herd and allows his dairy business to expand. Mulrooney feels that a successful career in farming can easily be achieved by young individuals, especially the educated and driven generation of university graduates that are currently entering the industry. “If a highly motivated and educated young person was to enter farming, I am sure with the right advice

and help that a good living and lifestyle can be achieved,” he says. This potential to succeed doesn’t imply that the farming sector is any less uncertain than others in the current economy and Mulrooney warns that young farmers need to remain vigilant regarding the current state of the industry. “Farming is very much in a state of flux at present. Almost all sectors are suffering at the one time which in the past was not always the case,” he explains. However, he notes that dairy farming appears to be one sector of the industry where, if you are not highly indebted, a comfortable living can be made without necessitating huge inputs on both a personal and financial level.

He also notes that for the next generation of the farming industry, Budget 2017 showed significant improvement on their prospects for the future. He recalls that one positive aspect of the Budget was the Government’s recognition of farming as a vital sector. “I was glad to see in Budget 2017 that the current Government sees agriculture as a very important source of jobs,” says Mulrooney. “I am sure the measures introduced to fund low cost loans will help many farmers restructure their debts and leave them in a much better position financially to make the most of the opportunities that will arise in the coming years and to expand and innovate inside the farm gate.”

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

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24/11/2016 29/09/2016 15:11 09:55 23/09/2016 14:00

HERITAGE Clockwise from far left: Looking east from Ossory Hill; Contributor Ned Moran; The Path Field, Carrigeen; Mass rock, Ballygub, St. Brigid’s Well, Kells

What’s a in name?

MEITHEAL NA BPÁIRCEANNA, A NEW PUBLICATION RELEASED BY KILKENNY COUNTY COUNCIL, CELEBRATES THE HERITAGE OF THE REGION BY DOCUMENTING THE NEAR LOST NAMES OF RURAL FIELDS WITHIN KILKENNY’S BORDERS. ORLA CONNOLLY REPORTS.

Meitheal na bPáirceanna, a book which has evolved from an initiative known as the Kilkenny Field Name Project, began life when visual artist Alan Counihan presented an exhibition of the local landscape during the Kilkenny Arts Festival. Recognising the value of this exhibition and the potential for further study, Kilkenny Heritage Council decided to expand upon this work.

The book focuses on the history behind rural field names in the area, exploring their rich heritage and meaning. The driving force behind this endeavour was to ensure that the beauty of these regions isn’t lost to technical field mapping terms introduced in recent years. For Alan Counihan, who initially sparked the project and became project coordinator and co-editor of Meitheal na bPáirceanna, the shared history of these names is an integral part of local culture. “You’re holding the resonance of the landscape of what happened there in the past, of who lived there in the past, of ways of living that’s different to

our own. The Song Field, the Pleasure Ground, those kind of field names, surely there’s far more to those than Pasture F536 or Pasture Block 2364,” he says.

While those former names are undoubtedly poetic, Counihan notes that field names typically evolved from practical labelling of the land. Communities recalled the majority of field names by either how they were utilised or by the name of the family who held ownership of the land. In some instances, fields were also remembered for the historical events which took place within their boundaries. “There’s a remarkable one, An Poll Leabhair,” says Counihan. “It’s when Cromwell sacked a certain townland down here, he was supposed to have gone into the church and taken the holy book out of the church and thrown it into a hole in that field. That field is now called An Poll Leabhair, ‘The Hole of The Book.’

So there would be many like those.”

Counihan also notes that Irish-

named fields have drawn the most attention among the wider public due to overwhelming interest in the language, despite fluency of Irish dying out in the region in the 1930s. “What I found most interesting was that most volunteers and even the public at large, they’re fascinated in the older field names. Now they’d be the Irish ones. Because they see a window or even a pathway to an older time,” he says. “Even when the Irish field name is completely corrupted, they see great merit in preserving those names.” Counihan also highlights the spotlight the book directs towards the collective past of the Kilkenny community. “I wouldn’t use the word poetry in tandem with farming but it’s about a richness about another way of living,” he tells me. “It’s about community and who lived here before us, and we really would lose something very rich about our past if we let those field names disappear.”

Since the launch of the book, the public response has sparked further interest in the

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HERITAGE The Castle Field, Sandford’s Court

Contributor Eilis Costello

project, which has already researched and recorded 7,000 local field names and 190 townlands. “People living in rural Ireland are deeply connected to the place they were born or grew up in, or where their family came from. What is so important about this project is that it allows people to get actively involved in tracing the memories, and the history, themselves,” explains Dearbhala Ledwidge, Heritage Officer with Kilkenny County Council.

Community involvement was a driving factor behind both the book and the project as a whole, with community members key in driving both forward. After attending a local meeting held by Counihan and the Kilkenny Heritage Council, volunteer Carmel Cummins decided to become involved. A key contributor to the book and a Kilkenny local, Cummins has always has an affinity for the Irish language.

This love of her native tongue was a considerable asset when deciphering the more complex Irish field names, but the

Dearbhala Ledwidge

project still presented her with a number of challenges. “There was a particular field name I got in that book and that was An Dréimishe Buí, which means ‘the yellow ladder’ in Irish. It was complete confusion to us all as to why a field name would be called a yellow ladder,” she says. The name ‘Yellow Ladder’ is thought to have originated from a yellow plant which previously flourished on the grounds and was considered to have medicinal benefits.

Cummins believes that locals chose the name in order to easily and quickly identify the location of this helpful yellow plant.

Not only those with an interest in history or the Irish language showed excitement about the project. Locals, both young and old, who care deeply for their own personal heritage, also stepped forward to take part.

“In Kilcross I came across this wonderful boy of 14, he was just fascinated that this was his place and he was learning about his place.” says Cummins. “I just think a sense of place is an incredibly important thing for

Carmel Cummins

all of us to have. To be able to name your place and to know it and to appreciate its history is a really good thing to do.”

The project continues to expand, with more members of the public keen to get involved. “We’ve had many people contacting us to get involved and survey their own townlands, and many more who want to get a copy of the book,” says Dearbhala Ledwidge.

“We’ve even had a query from as far away as Australia – from an ancestor of a woman who emigrated to Australia from Co Kilkenny in the 1850s. The project has really caught the imagination, and resonated with so many people.”

Looking back, Alan Counihan credits the overall success of Meitheal na bPáirceanna to the volunteers and contributors of the book who worked relentlessly to complete the publication. For him, this book and its success chiefly lies with them, preserving a part of Kilkenny’s history that may otherwise have been lost.

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Patrick and Tommy Redmond

Alfie Kirwan

Kieran Dooley

Neville Myles

Recognising Excellence Leaders in sustainable farming have been acknowledged by the Origin Green Sustainable Producer Awards.

Dermot Sherry

Ireland’s most efficient and environmentally-friendly farms were honoured at Bord Bia’s Origin Green Sustainable Producer Awards. Over 200 farmers and industry representatives attended the event in Killenard, Co Laois.

In total, 28 producers were selected as finalists from the membership of Bord Bia’s Quality Assurance programmes for beef and dairy. These farms achieved excellent scores in their QA audits and were also among the top performers surveyed with regard to carbon footprint, biodiversity and water quality. As well as recognising the exceptional performance of these leading producers, the awards highlight the link between environmental sustainability and efficient beef and dairy production at farm level.

Each of the 28 finalists was visited by a panel of judges, representing Bord Bia and Teagasc, who were highly impressed with the practices being adopted to raise efficiency and profitability. These include measures to improve animal performance, grassland management, herd health and fertility, while controlling inputs such as concentrate feed and fertiliser. Because of the high standard of all of the finalists, the judges had an

extremely difficult task in deciding the winners of the eight category awards.

BEEF AWARD: OVERALL CATEGORY WINNERS On the beef-side of the competition, the 12 finalists were spread between different geographic regions (South, West/North West and Midlands/North East). There were three farms in each of the following production categories: • Suckler to Beef • Suckler to Weanling/Store • Weanling/Store to Beef • Dairy Calf to Beef It is highly encouraging that the carbon footprint of beef production on the finalists’ farms is 25 – 35 per cent lower than the national average for the respective categories.

Much of this achievement is associated with doing the simple things very well, in terms of breeding management, monitoring performance, grassland management and soil fertility. Along with being environmentally sustainable, these measures are also what make these farms among the most efficient.

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

The winners of the four category awards for beef production were as follows: Suckler to Beef category: Alfie Kirwan, Killimor, Co Galway Alfie Kirwan’s suckler herd has one of the highest calving rates in the country and is now converting to organic production, encouraged by demand for this premium niche market.

Suckler to Weanling/Store category: Neville Myles, Ballyshannon, Co Donegal Neville Myles was successful in the highly competitive suckler to weanling/ store category of the Origin Green producer awards. He demonstrated a keen ability to produce excellent quality weanlings and manage grass effectively in often difficult Donegal ground conditions this year.

Weanling/Store to Beef category: Kieran Dooley, Tullamore, Co Offaly Tullamore-based Kieran Dooley, along with his brother Brian and son Joe, specialise in the intensive finishing of well-bred continental young bulls and heifers, and have a keen focus on market demand.

Dairy Calf to Beef category: Pat and Tom Redmond, Gorey, Co Wexford Brothers Pat and Tom Redmond operate a significant calf to beef enterprise in Gorey, Co Wexford.

Production is coordinated so as to finish ten high-quality Angus-cross heifers per week, to supply beef to the family’s two hotels in Gorey.

DAIRY AWARDS: OVERALL CATEGORY WINNERS Sixteen dairy finalists from across the length and breadth of the country were recognised as being among the leading Irish producers with regard to efficiency and sustainability. No two enterprises were the same, with herd size, land type and cow type differing between the finalists’ farms.

However what stood out clearly across all farms was the attention to detail, the usage of information and ultimately the strive for excellence.

That is to say, excellence in terms of achieving greater tonnes of grass dry matter per hectare, a higher output of milk solids or better management

of soil nutrients. The judging panel, representing Bord Bia and Teagasc, noted that all of the finalists are truly excellent producers who would stand out in any competition. Their awareness and understanding of all aspects of their farms and the impact on the wider environment was highly impressive.

The winners of the four category awards for dairy production were as follows: Small-Medium Herd category: John Joe and Theresa O’Sullivan, Rosscarbery, Co Cork According to the judges John Joe and Theresa O’Sullivan’s dairy farm in Rosscarbery, Co Cork, supplying Lisavaird Co-op, is a hive of productivity.

They milk 70 cows on 45 hectares, with cows grazing over 300 days a year every year. Biodiversity was noted to be a key feature on this excellent dairy farm with a habitat, some woodland, an ancient fort and an orchard where John Joe practices his hobby of beekeeping.

Liquid/Winter Milk Category: Dermot Sherry, Drumhillock, Co Monaghan Dermot Sherry is using grass measurement and management to improve productivity on his farm.

Supplying LacPatrick Co-op, cow numbers this year reached a peak of 118, up from 70 just a few years ago.

Carbon Footprint Reduction category: Patrick Brennan, Ballingarry, Co Tipperary Patrick Brennan, a farmer outside Ballingarry, Co Tipperary, who milks over 170 cows and supplies Arrabawn Co-op, has made small changes resulting in large efficiency gains. Patrick’s attention to detail and tweaks to his system have resulted in a reduction of the carbon footprint of this farm.

Large Herd category: John Hannigan, Dromcollogher, Co Limerick The judges were particularly impressed

by John Hannigan from Dromcollogher, Co Limerick who supplies Kerry Coop. John has focussed on breeding to build a solid foundation for his farm of over 110 Friesian cows.

ORIGIN GREEN Origin Green is a voluntary, national sustainability development programme developed by Bord Bia to demonstrate

John Hannigan

Patrick Brennan

John Joe O’Sullivan with his sons Peter and Andrew

the commitment of the entire Irish food and drink industry to operating sustainably. Through Origin Green, across its farms and its businesses, Ireland is mobilising its entire nation to deliver on the ambition of having all its food and drink producers on the journey to sustainability by 2016.

Origin Green builds on the Irish Food Board’s Quality Assurance schemes which have been in place for over 20 years, auditing farmers every 18 months to ensure the production of safe, high quality food and drink measuring a broad spectrum of criteria including animal health, welfare and traceability, water and feed, pasture management, environmental management, farm safety and biodiversity.

“THROUGH ORIGIN GREEN, ACROSS ITS FARMS AND ITS BUSINESSES, IRELAND IS MOBILISING ITS ENTIRE NATION TO DELIVER ON THE AMBITION OF HAVING ALL ITS FOOD AND DRINK PRODUCERS ON THE JOURNEY TO SUSTAINABILITY BY 2016.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT WWW.ORIGINGREEN.IE/AWARDS

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POLITICS

Brexit Blues AS BRITAIN PLANS ITS BREXIT STRATEGY, EAR TO THE GROUND EXAMINES HOW OUR NEIGHBOUR’S BIG DECISION TO LEAVE THE EU MIGHT AFFECT IRISH FARMERS.

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POLITICS

On June 23rd 2016, the impossible happened. To universal surprise, the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. Not even Nigel Farage, the movement’s chief mouthpiece, had seemed all that confident as the voting booths closed.

By the following morning, it was the Brexiteers who were celebrating.

The call from Ireland had been near unanimous – just don’t do it.

In the run up to the referendum, An Taoiseach Enda Kenny had spoken of his “sincere hope” that the UK would decide to stay and work with us for a better, more effective EU. The Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) was among the organisations to reinforce that message to our near neighbours.

Now that the unlikely outcome is a reality, the question has been where do we go from here? The recent British High Court decision that Parliament should get a vote on when the process of leaving the EU begins means the period of uncertainty has likely been extended. In this climate, Ireland is still clambering to adjust to a new world.

From a farming perspective, the

IFA believes it is hugely important for the country’s agri-food sector that market access to the UK remains as free as possible with the minimisation of any barriers to trade. “We believe that in the negotiations between the EU and the UK, there must be a strong commitment on both sides to achieve a positive trading relationship,” says Rowena Dwyer, IFA Chief Economist.

The UK is Ireland’s largest customer for food and drink, accounting for over 40 per cent of Irish agricultural output. As well as the obvious benefit of geographical positioning, customers there share similar consumer preferences and have long trusted Irish produce.

According to Bord Bia, Brexit represents a significant challenge to this vital trading relationship which our two nations share. Speaking the morning of the referendum result, Aidan Cotter, Bord Bia’s Chief Executive, pledged that the organisation would maintain and

build on this relationship, regardless of any new trading arrangements.

“Despite its continuing and expanding global reach, the UK has continued to represent a growth opportunity for the Irish food and drink industry, driven by a strong economy and an increasing population,” he said. “The UK is a net importer of food and Ireland as an exporter is considered a perfect match. The immediate focus of food, drink and horticulture exporters concerns the development in the sterling versus euro relationship and how to manage the increased volatility that has emerged following the vote.”

“ACCORDING TO BORD BIA, BREXIT REPRESENTS A SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGE TO THIS VITAL TRADING RELATIONSHIP WHICH OUR TWO NATIONS SHARE.”

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POLITICS

PHOTO: MALCOLM MCNALLY/MERRIONSTREET.IE

Enda Kenny met with British Prime Minister Theresa May at 10 Downing Street last July, with the topic of Brexit chief on the agenda.

“RURAL AREAS IN BOTH THE REPUBLIC AND THE NORTH FACE THE PROSPECT OF A VISIBLE BORDER AFFECTING LOCAL TOURISM, AS VISITORS HAVE THEIR MOVEMENTS RESTRICTED.” Cotter added: “The resilience of the Irish food sector, the long standing and strong trading relationship between Ireland and the UK, and the close ties between both countries, will help the Irish food industry navigate through these uncertain times.”

Though the UK’s withdrawal from the EU has not yet been officially triggered, Ireland has still felt some effects. The sudden and sustained weakening of the sterling has proved a major challenge as it reduces the competitiveness of Ireland’s exports and, conversely, increases the competitiveness of imports from the UK into the Irish domestic market.

According to the IFA, sectors almost fully dependent on the UK market – such as the mushroom industry – have been hit immediately with lower prices as their contracts are negotiated in sterling. “For all sectors, the exchange rate movement is putting pressure on the price that is being returned to the primary producer,” says Dwyer. Another issue is the potential impact on the European Union and CAP budget post-2020 arising from the departure of the UK, a net contributor to the EU budget. “Ireland must be very clear about the need for a strong CAP budget,” asserts Dwyer. “This is critical

for farm incomes, farm output and wider economic activity in the rural economy.”

Much of the focus on this island has been how Brexit will impact on the Republic of Ireland’s relationship with the North. 56 per cent of Northern Ireland’s population voted to stay in the European Union. But as the only part of the UK to share a land border with an EU country, there has been some distress that Brexit may lead to a physical border and passport controls being introduced between the two regions. The worst-case scenario is a straining of the peace process.

From a farming perspective, Northern Ireland’s EU farming and fishery subsidies are surely under threat. And rural areas in both the Republic and the North face the prospect of a visible border affecting local tourism, as visitors have their movements restricted. Speaking to Ear to the Ground ahead of the vote earlier this year, Louth sheep farmer Matthew McGreehan expressed his concerns that a physical border could affect local tourism. “Tourists can come to the Cooley Mountains, spend the day there, cross the border to the Mourne Mountains freely, they’re all one,” he said. “If that border was there,

the area would be less attractive. Even people coming from Belfast on short breaks to the Cooley Peninsula, it would have a knock-on effect on tourism.”

Animal health issues and the maintenance of coherent and comparable standards will also have to be addressed.

If Britain opts to move away from EU standards, it could adversely affect important issues such as cross-border processing, animal identity, animal disease controls and food safety. “The shared land border between Ireland and Northern Ireland presents a unique challenge in relation to maintaining and improving herd health standards,” says Rowena Dwyer. “Continued cooperation between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland on animal health standards, as currently exists, must be maintained. Coherence in regulations and standards is critical.”

The future remains uncertain. What the referendum means for the UK, nobody seems quite sure. What knock on effects it has for the rest of world are more out of focus than ever. What is clear, though, is that the Irish Government must be proactive in ensuring Britain’s decision does not impact our farmers in a negative way. In October, the Taoiseach reaffirmed that the priorities of the Government were the peace process and Northern Ireland, the Common Travel Area, the future of the European Union, and the Irish economy and trade.

What we do know is that the decline of sterling is a market disturbance which has occurred swiftly and unexpectedly, and has resulted in significant price falls.

The IFA believes that the duration and extent of the sterling depreciation is such that the Government must take more action to provide additional support to particularly vulnerable sectors.

“Direct support should be provided to affected producers through CAP market support measures,” says Dwyer.

“The Government should also look at options that may be available to provide direct support to exporting food and drink companies in the form of employment support measures.”

Right now, the IFA is keen to underline the importance of resources being used to increase market access and to promote Irish produce in the UK and international markets. As Dwyer notes, “assistance must be provided to exporters to enter new markets but, in the short-term, to strengthen their negotiations on the UK market, and return as strong a price as possible.”

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CRIME

becoming

Cyber smart FARMING ISN’T AN INDUSTRY IMMUNE TO THE HAZARDS OF INTERNET HACKERS AND CYBER ATTACKS, AS EAR TO THE GROUND DISCOVERED. Agriculture is not generally associated with cyber attacks, but as the industry becomes more digitalised, it has become a more enticing target for hackers.

Precision agriculture (or smart farming), for example, has been a great development across the globe as it reduces costs and increases crop yields. But farmers need to be aware of the risks posed by criminals to their data online. In fact, in March of this year, an FBI report found the agri-sector is increasingly vulnerable

to such attacks as farmers become more reliant on digitised data.

“Historically, the farming industry has lacked awareness of how their data should be protected from cyber exploitation, likely reflecting low industry demand for adequate cyber security,” the Bureau warned.

The FBI and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) believe that cyber attackers might target individuals and entities in the farming industry to

steal key data, such as crop yields, livestock breeding history and animal health data. The intention can be to destroy this information in protest of, for example, the use of genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) or pesticides. Hackers could also seek to disrupt food production and processing or to hold the data for ransom.

“The single most important protection measure against these threats is to implement a robust data back-up and recovery plan,” wrote the FBI. “Back-ups should

42 EAR TO THE GROUND

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CRIME

IFA TIPS: be

cyber smart

THE IFA HAS PROVIDED THESE COMMON SENSE TIPS TO HELP FARMERS BECOME MORE CYBER SMART…

1

Never give out login credentials, over the phone, in person, or by email. Any competent service provider or customer care department would never ask for your full login credentials in any circumstance.

3

2

Be wary of items from unknown sources or even suspicious links from trusted sources. Stop. Think. Click – Think twice before clicking links.

When using public Wi-Fi, refrain from sending or receiving private information.

5

Check for ‘https:’ before the address in your browser address bar when visiting sites that require you to enter security or password info.

7

Roll the mouse pointer over links to reveal their actual destination, displayed in the bottom left corner of the browser or in Microsoft Outlook above the link.

4 6

If you are using devices issued by your employer, report any loss or theft immediately to IT.

Use a different password for every website. If you only have one password, a criminal simply has to break a single password to gain access to all your information and accounts. An alternative is to look at password managers such as 1Password, which uses virtual vault technology.

8

If you have difficulty remembering complex passwords, try using a passphrase like ‘I love getting to work at 7:00!’ Longer passwords are harder to crack than shorter, complex passwords.

leave your smartphone, tablet, or laptop !!! Never unattended in a public place. be maintained in a separate and secure location so that malicious actors cannot readily access them from local networks.”

It’s not just dissenters who target agriculture, though. There are the online criminals trying to swipe a firm or individual’s hard earned euros, too. To them, farmers are another group of potential victims. The number of cyber attacks against Irish businesses has risen from 25 per cent to 44 per cent since 2012, according to the PwC 2016 Irish Economic Crime survey, released last April. Of those affected, nearly one in five suffered losses of between €92,000 and €4.6 million.

“THE WHOLE AREA OF CYBER SECURITY IS ONE THAT WE MUST EMBRACE ACTIVELY. MANY OF OUR FARMING AND RURAL DWELLERS ARE ONLY ADAPTING TO USING TECHNOLOGY OF LATE, AND NOW THEY ARE HAVING TO BECOME WARY OF THREATS IN THEIR OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT.

COLIN SAYS:

The Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) has made bolstering members’ cyber security a top priority, encouraging farmers to take simple, common sense steps to ensure their phones and laptops are less susceptible to security breaches.

“The whole area of cyber security is one that we must embrace actively,” says IFA Rural Crime Prevention Executive Colin Connolly. “Many of our farming and rural dwellers are only adapting to using technology of late and now they are having to become wary of threats in their operational environment. The concern for me personally is that a bad cyber

experience might set them back in terms of engagement with technology. The key component here is how the message is communicated to the user.”

According to IFA technology consultant Ethan Clear, the upcoming phasing out of cheques as a transactional method will affect the farming demographic more than most. “Farmers will need to become more au fait with the security approaches pertaining to online banking such as making sure the web connection is secure when logging in through a web browser, and that they have some form of passcode or biometric on mobile devices,” he says.

Additionally, a new anti-crime initiative supported by the IFA, Crimestoppers, An Garda Síochána and DoneDeal has been launched to combat farm-related crime and thefts. One of the goals of the initiative is to encourage farmers to sign up to TheftStop, which allows them to make new digital technology work for them in an effort to combat crooks.

TheftStop – a joint initiative by the IFA and Gardaí – provides farmers with a unique security ID which allows the user to mark their machinery and equipment.

Farmers can then upload an image of the item to the TheftStop site. Marked and branded items are far less attractive to criminals to steal as they are more easily recognisable to the public and thus harder to sell on.

Unfortunately, as technology evolves, so will the cyber criminals. Most hackers are opportunists, and will continue to seek out whatever gaps in the public’s online security they can find. The best way for farmers to protect themselves is to remain as vigilant as possible by never losing focus on the potential risks.

EAR TO THE GROUND 43

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09/12/2016 15:47

INTERVIEW

opening doors CONOR FORREST SPOKE WITH MINISTER FOR AGRICULTURE MICHAEL CREED ABOUT HIS BACKGROUND IN FARMING, THE CHALLENGES HE’S FACING IN HIS MINISTERIAL ROLE, AND THE OPPORTUNITIES HE SEES FOR IRISH AGRICULTURE GOING FORWARD.

T

his year is undoubtedly a challenging time to take on the role of Minister for Agriculture, with a backdrop of high costs, low prices and difficulties in accessing finance – including an urgent call from the IFA seeking political intervention to prevent the collapse of the entire Irish tillage sector. Perhaps, then, a minister with a background both in farming and politics is best placed to understand arguments from all sides of the table, which is what the current Government has in Michael Creed.

His father, Donal Creed, was also a TD from 1965 to 1989, and served as Minister of State at the Department of Health between June and November 1981, during the first coalition government led by Garrett Fitzgerald.

Prior to his political career, the elder Creed was a farmer back in Macroom, milking cattle during the 1950s, supplying the local creamery, neighbours and Macroom’s hospital. When Donal left for Dublin and Dáil Eireann in 1965, responsibility for the farm was passed on. One of Minister Creed’s earliest memories, he recently told the Irish Examiner, was of being kept home from school in order to sell store cattle at the mart, rubbing shoulders with experienced

traders and farmers many years his senior – great experience for the years ahead.

During his time in college, Minister Creed spent his summers broadening his experience, working with a local silage contractor. Having studied to become a teacher, he left college in 1985 and returned home, spending the next ten years on the family dairy farm. His first taste of politics came in 1987 when he was elected to Cork County Council.

Two years later he was elected to Dáil Éireann, keeping his seat (apart from a brief interlude between 2002 and 2007) for the best part of 22 years. The farm is still in the family today, albeit rented out – the price of a busy life. “[Farming] is in my DNA, to be honest. I represent a very rural constituency...it goes from Slieve Luachra to the Múscraí Gaeltacht where it has very challenging terrain,” he explains.

“And then I have all farming enterprises

and all land types; if you can navigate that politically it’s an advantage coming into a department like this.”

CHALLENGES Seven months into his new role as Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and Minister Creed is facing perhaps the toughest challenges in his career to date. Farmers across the board are experiencing financial hardships with yields and prices down, the Irish economy as a whole is still in the recovery stage, and Brexit looms large on the minds of all Government departments.

“Each year brings its own unique challenges. We had, in a way, a perfect storm this year – we had market challenges and we have political challenges consequent of Brexit, and we had political challenges consequent on the outcome of an uncertain election,” he says. “I think the biggest challenge the department faces is in the context of Brexit. On Brexit I’m on the record as saying there’s no upside whatsoever for the agri-food sector. And it’s our biggest market – 43 per cent of our exports go to the UK. In value terms in 2015, it was over €5 billion. It’s our biggest market for beef, it’s our biggest market for dairy and, with the way sterling has moved, it’s a very, very significant challenge. This is just something that informs our every waking moment now.”

The downside of Brexit has become very real of late. The Irish mushroom industry represents one of the earliest casualties of the UK’s vote to leave the EU, and IFA President Joe Healy has urged the EU Commission to provide support for producers who have been hit by the recent sterling depreciation. “The sudden and sustained depreciation of sterling, which is as a direct result of the UK vote, has had a very negative impact on the price returned to producers here in Ireland,” he said. “Mushroom contracts are negotiated in sterling and prices are forward agreed, generally for contract periods of up to 12 months.

Mushroom producers cannot renegotiate the price they are receiving in response to the sterling decline because the contracts are for a fixed time period.”

“SEVEN MONTHS INTO HIS NEW ROLE AS MINISTER FOR AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND THE MARINE, AND MINISTER CREED IS FACING PERHAPS THE TOUGHEST CHALLENGES IN HIS CAREER TO DATE.”

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PHOTO: MAXWELL PHOTOGRAPHY

INTERVIEW

ETTG_Winter 2016_Minster.indd 45

Minister Michael Creed

EAR TO THE GROUND 45

30/11/2016 14:40

INTERVIEW

PHOTO: MAXWELL PHOTOGRAPHY

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT: Minister Creed at the launch of a €30m redesigned fishmeal plant in Killybegs, Co Donegal; At the launch of the second year of ACORNS, a part time development programme for aspiring rural female entrepreneurs; Minister Creed launching the Origin Green platform in Shanghai earlier this year

“NEW MARKETS ARE ALSO OPENING UP TO IRISH AGRI-FOOD, WHICH COULD HELP MITIGATE ANY POTENTIAL LOSS FROM BREXIT.” There are some bright lights on the horizon. Minister Creed explains how he is pleased with the industry’s efforts to reduce emissions and contribute positively to climate change in recent years, despite the difficulty in meeting targets in the short term. “I think first of all the industry needs to be acknowledged for what it has achieved in climate change up to now. We are, by independent verification, the most carbon efficient producer of milk within the European Union and consequently probably the most efficient in the world bar none. We’re fifth most efficient on the beef side. In that area there’s a lot done, more to do, if I can borrow a phrase from somewhere else that I recall!” he says. The Minister also notes that the implementation of energy and carbon efficient measures is not only of benefit to the environment, but also the farmer’s bottom line. “The interesting thing on the climate change side is that virtually all of the measures taken are also measures that reduce farmers’ input costs and increase profitability.

But we have taken most of the lowhanging fruit in that area, so the next round of challenges and objectives will be more difficult,” he adds.

Some relief for Irish farmers was also to be found in Budget 2017.

Among the steps taken in Michael

Noonan’s budget was an allocation of €25m to a new animal welfare scheme for sheep, a €50m allocation for TAMS, €5m in capital investment for the commercial horticulture sector, €111.6m for the Forestry Programme, and the reversal of Farm Assist cuts.

Perhaps one of the most substantial moves was the introduction of a €150m agri-loan fund in conjunction with the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI), which will provide flexible access to finance at a much lower rate of interest than other avenues of credit. The process, Minister Creed explains, began back in July, when an EU aid package of €500m was announced for the dairy and other livestock industries – a general support package of €350m with an additional €150m earmarked for supply reduction initiatives within the milk industry. Ireland’s allocation of general support was €11m, matched with Exchequer funding to develop a fund with an interest rate of 2.95 per cent, which Creed describes as a product “beyond compare with anything that is already in the market.”

“If you took a common thread on all of the pre-Budget submissions that we received, both from inside the farm gate and outside the farm gate, it was access to affordable finance. Some of that is

a legacy issue on the economic collapse and the banking collapse in particular, that our pillar banks can’t offer access to finance at a cost commensurate with what others across Europe get,” he tells me. “I was very pleased, in conjunction with the SBCI, to be able to deliver a loan package at very competitive interest rates in the Budget.” However, the new scheme isn’t meant as a get out of jail free card for farmers in financial difficulties. “The message around this needs to be very clear – this isn’t an invitation for people to borrow their way out of difficulty,” the Minister warns. “This is a fund that needs to be used prudently by farmers to address their current cash flow difficulties in the most competitive way possible.”

New markets are also opening up to Irish agri-food, which could help mitigate any potential loss from Brexit.

It’s one of a number of priorities for Minister Creed, and his department’s market development unit is constantly busy, exploring and developing new market opportunities. Southeast Asia has been flagged as a region for potential growth, with Minister Creed leading his first trade mission to China, Vietnam, Korea and Singapore back in September, while Ireland recently received access to the Iranian market for sheep meat. Morocco and Algeria could also present opportunities for live exports, and the Minister led a second trade mission to the two North African countries in early November in a bid to expand Ireland’s footprint.

“In export terms, China is our second biggest market for dairy and our second biggest market for pork.

Southeast Asia is identified in Food Wise 2025 as an emerging market with enormous potential for us – big middle class, significant purchasing power, and increasingly westernised dietary habits,” he explains. “If you take all of those it’s a natural place for us to pitch our tent and to maximise the advantages which we have – safe, traceable and, increasingly significant, our sustainably produced food. We don’t tell [the industry] where they have to go, but in conjunction with them identify markets which have potential. We open the doors, the industry follows.”

46 EAR TO THE GROUND

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PROFILE

Fun on the Farm

Rodents and snakes are among the farm’s diverse animal population

BASED IN DUNGOURNEY, CO CORK, LEAHY’S OPEN FARM COMBINES A HOST OF ACTIVITIES AND ATTRACTIONS WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF AN IRISH FARM, WRITES ERIN DONNELLY. What was once a traditional farm enterprise, Leahy’s Open Farm in Co Cork has expanded into a well-known tourist attraction for families across Ireland, the brainchild of Eddie and Eileen Leahy, who lived in a small cottage which now serves as Farmer Eddie’s Cottage, through which visitors to the farm can now stroll. The farm first started attracting people due to the vast amounts of vintage machinery scattered around the property; Eddie’s collection grew when he and his wife attended festivals where they would acquire a variety of vintage machinery.

As the collection and public interest grew, the family took a leap of faith and in 1996 opened the farm as an attraction to display all the machinery. As it continued to grow in popularity, Eileen saw potential in expanding into the agritourism industry.

With help and funding from South and East Cork Area Development Partnership, the business was able to expand and became a reality. The public responded, and today the open farm attracts families by the thousands from across Cork and further afield. It’s not difficult to see why – the farm offers experiences and activities ranging from trails and go-karting to mazes and mini-golf, and a very popular collection of mini-JCB diggers. And, as you might expect from an open farm, there are plenty of animals on hand – cats, birds, goats and donkeys, while the Jolly Barn is home to mice, guinea pigs, snakes and monkeys.

Alongside seasonal activities, including baking cookies at Santa’s Village in the runup to Christmas, the Leahys are constantly innovating. This year the farm had an exciting addition of 12 baby piglets, while

The quad and barrel train makes its way around the farm

a new, unique experience sees visitors using cow’s milk to make ice-cream. In 2017, the farm hopes to open a mini ice-cream factory on site. “We make our own icecream and we want to provide a personal experience for families to see the whole process,” explains Donal Leahy, son of owners Eddie and Eileen. “The ice-cream factory will give kids the opportunity to see how the milk is condensed and made into ice-cream for everyone to enjoy.”

Eddie, Eileen and everyone at Leahy’s Open Farm are an inspiration to entrepreneurs everywhere. The diversification from a traditional farm enterprise to an agritourism business has sustained employment for family members and those from the local community. The farm has exceeded the expectations of visitors through personalised events and activities that engage both parents and

The Mystery Maze is 4 feet high and covers just under an acre

children. Although entering the agritourism industry was a risk, the success of the farm today means it has very much paid off. “If you really believe in something, through hard work and commitment it can become a reality,” Donal concludes.

To learn more about Leahy’s Open Farm visit www.leahysopenfarm.ie.

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POLITICS

What’s the

It’s perhaps fair to say that the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) and ABP Food Group aren’t on the best of terms in recent months. The two organisations have clashed over ABP’s purchase of a 50 per cent stake in Slaney Meats, with the IFA raising concerns over issues surrounding competition in the Irish market. ABP, owned by ‘beef baron’ Larry Goodman, processes in the region of 20 per cent of Irish cattle, while Slaney Group is Ireland’s fifth largest beef processor, and the largest processor of sheep/lamb meat. The IFA was not alone in its concerns – MEP Mairead McGuinness and the Irish Cattle & Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA) both requested an examination of market impacts by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC), although the responsibility for that was passed to Brussels.

In July the IFA submitted a report – drawn up by PMCA Economic Consulting – to the Directorate-General for Competition in Brussels, which concluded that the deal between ABP

Beef?

THE IRISH FARMERS’ ASSOCIATION AND ABP FOOD GROUP HAVE LOCKED HORNS IN 2016 OVER ISSUES SURROUNDING COMPETITION AND THE COLLECTION OF THE EIF LEVY.

and Slaney was ‘likely to weaken competition further’. Despite any protestations, the European Commission cleared the deal between the two companies in early October, concluding that there would be no adverse effect on competition within the Irish market.

“This is a positive outcome for the respective businesses and a step in the right direction for the red meat industry in Ireland. It is imperative for the longterm sustainability of the sector that we develop highly effective business models that maximise the opportunities to sell quality beef and lamb from Ireland in the international marketplace. That

has been the combined goal of ABP and Fane Valley from the very outset,” said Trevor Lockhart, CEO of Fane Valley Group, which includes Slaney Meats as part of its broad portfolio of companies. Commenting on the decision, Frank Stephenson, CEO, ABP Food Group said: “Today’s decision, which follows a thorough evaluation by the DG for Competition at the EU Commission, will allow the parties to enhance an already highly competitive beef processing sector in Ireland and to grow their main export markets through the JV [Slaney Foods]. This transaction has always been about securing better EAR TO THE GROUND 51

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PHOTO: FINBARR O’ROURKE

POLITICS

JOE HEALY SAYS:

Joe Healy

international markets for meat products and developing an industry that needs to evolve to remain relevant and compete effectively on the global stage.”

IFA President Joe Healy, however, was less than impressed, and maintained that the conclusions of the DG for Competition were at odds with the reality on the ground, arguing that farmers are unable to simply switch slaughterhouses for a better price, as there is little or no variation in weekly quotes. “It also flies in the face of the main conclusion of the PMCA report, which was that the market for cattle is characterised by weak competition and the ABP/Slaney deal is likely to weaken competition even further, through a ‘substantial lessening of competition’,” he said.

The two organisations have also locked horns over the collection of the

TREVOR LOCKHART SAYS:

“IT IS IMPERATIVE FOR THE LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY OF THE SECTOR THAT WE DEVELOP HIGHLY EFFECTIVE BUSINESS MODELS.”

European Involvement Fund (EIF) levy, which provides funding for the IFA and other farming organisations. It’s an important source of income for the IFA alongside its membership dues – levy contributions across all channels amounted to over €4.7m in 2015, though the pay scandal which hit the organisation late last year saw the IFA forecasting a 12 per cent drop for 2016, to the tune of around €564,000. In the past, some farmers have been critical of the organisation’s reliance on the levies collected by the factories, arguing that it places the IFA in a weakened position at the negotiating table.

In August, ABP Group wrote to farmers to announce its intention to cease the automatic collection of the levy, instead leaving the choice up to individual farmers to opt-in.

In response, Healy wrote to ABP Group, instructing that they suspend the levy collection on the IFA’s behalf with immediate effect. “ABP will not dictate how IFA represents farmers or how farmers decide to support their association,” Healy said in a statement.

“ABP will not dictate to IFA and the association will not be compromised on any issue in its representation of farmers.” Before the change, ABP was collecting around 15 cent per €100 in sales from its suppliers – the loss to the IFA is estimated at around €250,000 per annum, no insignificant sum.

In Healy’s opinion, the move to make the collection of levies optional was an attack on his organisation for their stance over the merger with Slaney

“WE WILL NOT BE DEFLECTED FROM OUR WORK AND WE WILL NOT ALLOW ANY INTERFERENCE IN OUR REPRESENTATION OF FARMERS.”

Meats, arguing that other collectors were working ‘normally’ with the IFA. “ABP has challenged the independence of IFA and attempted to undermine the association by attacking our revenue stream. IFA will stand up to anybody who interferes in our work on behalf of farmers,” he stated, going on to say “we will not be deflected from our work and we will not allow any interference in our representation of farmers. Farmers see further concentration of ownership in the beef sector as making it more difficult to get full value for their cattle when selling.” ABP Group, however, has said that the move was in response to requests from its suppliers rather than in retaliation for the IFA’s position on the merger with Slaney Meats.

In the weeks and months following the row between the IFA and ABP Group, there are further signs of consolidation within the beef processing industry, with the recent announcement of Kepak’s planned acquisition of John Kelly Meats in Co Clare, subject to approval by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission and due diligance. There may also be signs of change in relation to the collection of the EIF levy, as well as overall transparency within the IFA – in November, Joe Healy wrote in the Irish Independent of a commitment to “provide details on the remuneration of key management personnel and clarity on staff salaries”, as well as plans to put in place “a reformed levy with closer voluntary oversight and an opt-out facility”.

Time will tell as to what really happens.

52 EAR TO THE GROUND

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24/10/2016 24/11/2016 10:30 15:16

BUSINESS

Shifting the Balance INCREASING NUMBERS OF FEMALE ENTREPRENEURS ARE ENTERING THE FOOD AND AGRIBUSINESS SECTOR. FIONA KELLY SPEAKS WITH THREE WOMEN WHO ARE MAKING THEIR MARK. With the food and agribusiness sector worth an estimated €24 billion to the Irish economy annually, and substantial support and investment available through agencies like Teagasc, Bord Bia and Enterprise Ireland, female entrepreneurs are increasingly setting their sights on this growing industry. Of the 84 companies showcasing at the Local Enterprise Village at this year’s National Ploughing Championships, approximately 50 of them were founded or co-founded by women. Products on show ranged from food and drink to companies with products specifically aimed at the agri-sector. According to Sarita Johnson, Head of Female Entrepreneurship at Enterprise Ireland (EI), agtech is a sector that EI is particularly keen to nurture. “It’s only in the past couple of years that the words ‘agri’ and ‘tech’

have been put together. Ireland already has a strong reputation for agriculture and with a growing number of people developing skills in technology, it makes sense for us to target a growing market with great export potential,” she says.

While traditionally, agriculture has been a male dominated industry and not an obvious career choice for women from urban backgrounds, Sarita believes that agtech has fewer perceived gender barriers. She also hopes that the Statebacked drive to attract more women into technology will have an impact.

“It’s about educating the educators and making changes at policy level. That means encouraging parents to make sure that their little girls are playing with Lego and having a choice of science subjects available on the curriculum in every girls’ school in the country,” she adds.

Marie Cronin TEMPLE DAIRY A chocolate milk that tastes great, is low in sugar and packed with antioxidants might seem too good to be true, but that is the boast of the new product from Temple Dairy, a family-run dairy farm in Athlacca, Co Limerick.

It is primarily aimed at sportspeople, which makes sense since it is the brainchild of a sportsperson. Marie Cronin, whose father Sean runs the dairy farm, played for the Republic of Ireland women’s football team for 13 years, earning 45 senior international caps, as well as playing Gaelic football for Limerick and winning an All-Ireland Championship in Croke Park in 2010. Marie also took up a sports scholarship in an American university and subsequently played football semiprofessionally in both the US and Norway. At the age of 27, having made the decision to retire from competitive sport, Marie returned home to the family farm and enrolled on the LEAP Intensive Business Accelerator Programme in Limerick. “Dairy farms around

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PHOTO: DON MOLONEY/PRESS 22

BUSINESS

Marie Cronin

the world are struggling and I knew that whatever product I came up with, it would be connected with adding value to dairy,” Marie says. “I saw that there was a gap in the market for this kind of drink – a milk product that has natural ingredients and appeals to people who are conscious of their level of sugar intake.” The label for the product is an old-fashioned milk churn and, at a price point of €1.95 for 250ml and €2.95 for 500ml, Marie says that she sees school lunches as another market. Marie says that she has embraced her new life as an entrepreneur and businesswoman. “I’ve really taken to it.

Creating my own brand was such fun and I have my whole family behind me,” she explains. “My dad is delighted to see me adding value to the milk we produce on the farm.” Starting from an initial customer base concentrated around the Munster region, Marie has just agreed a distribution deal with Musgraves, which will see the product on the

shelves in 700 stores around the country. The company is also in the process of attracting investment – at the moment it is still being made manually so, in order to expand into a bigger, automated plant, they are going to need an injection of funding. Since it is a lowmargin product, Marie says that she needs to chase high volume sales to make it viable. She also hopes to expand the flavour range in the coming months.

Although retired from professional sport, Marie still has a strong network in the sporting community, which she has tapped into since launching in February 2015. Munster Rugby has come onboard in supporting the brand and Keith Earls has been named as brand ambassador. Like all Munster supporters, Marie was devastated at the recent death of Anthony Foley, which was made particularly poignant for her when she discovered that the last tweet that he liked was Temple Dairy’s association with Munster Rugby.

Munster Rugby support

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BUSINESS

Clodagh Cavanagh

Clodagh Cavanagh ABBEY MACHINERY

“THERE HAS ALWAYS BEEN A STRONG WORK ETHIC IN OUR FAMILY, EVEN WHEN I WAS AT SCHOOL. IF WE WANTED TO EARN POCKET MONEY, WE CAME IN AND DID SOME WORK.”

CLODAGH SAYS:

On the day I spoke to Clodagh Cavanagh, she was welcoming a film crew into the company’s new plant in Nenagh, Co Tipperary in advance of the 2016 EY Entrepreneur of the Year Competition, in which she was the only female finalist in the International category. Being a woman in the male-dominated industry of farming machinery has never been an issue for Clodagh, however, since she comes from a strong line of female entrepreneurs – her grandmother, Mary, founded the company along with her grandfather Joe back in 1947.

Indeed, Mary Cavanagh lived to perform the opening ceremony on the new €10 million purpose-built factory at Toomevara in May 2015. She turned 100 that same week although she subsequently passed away just over a year later. “It was an enormous source of pride to her,” Clodagh recalls. “We used to drive her around the plant when it was being built and it meant so much to her to see how far the company has come since she and my grandfather set it up all those years ago.” Clodagh, as managing director, and her brother Owen, as a director, took over the running of the company from her father Charlie in 2013.

More than 100 people are employed at the company, which manufactures a range of agricultural machines, including slurry, manure handling and animal feeding equipment. A total of 60 per cent of the company’s products are exported to countries such as Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Saudi Arabia and Iceland, as well as Europe and the UK. Although Brexit is of concern, Clodagh says that the growth strategy for Abbey Machinery for the future is for “new products and markets”. Clodagh herself studied accountancy and, after a brief stint working on a placement at Intel while she was at college, has always worked in the family business.

“There has always been a strong work ethic in our family, even when I was at school. If we wanted to earn pocket money, we came in and did some work – that could have been answering the phone or sweeping the floor,” she says.

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BUSINESS

PHOTO: FINBARR O’ROURKE

Alma Jordan

Alma Jordan The lightbulb moment happened for Alma Jordan in 2014. It was a particularly bad year for farm deaths, the worst on record. Her son, Eamon, was just a toddler at the time and the death of two children really stuck a chord with her. Having grown up on a farm and now married to a farmer, Alma found herself worrying about the men in her life. “My dad, my brother and my husband all still work on farms and I can’t help but worry about them, although luckily there have only ever been a few knocks, grazes and some near misses in our family,” Alma says. Born out of a belief that the farm safety message isn’t being driven home enough, she decided to target the next generation with Agri Kids, a range of illustrated books called Tales from Riverside Farm, a website and a selection of farm-safe clothing that Eamon, now aged four, obligingly models on the website. The appeal of the books, according

AGRI KIDS

to Alma, is that: “They get the farm safety message across without being preachy. The books feature a character called Mr Brambles.

The kids love him and the stories have a little bit of magic and intrigue that gives them widespread appeal to kids from both urban and rural backgrounds”. Enterprise Ireland has clearly been convinced that there is something magical about Agri Kids, giving Alma a place on their New Frontiers programme followed by a Competitive Start-Up Fund (CSF) grant of €50,000 in exchange for 10 per cent equity in the company. Other awards such as winning silver at the Bank of Ireland Start-up Awards and a Maternity & Infant Award have helped boost the profile of Agri Kids. Alma also hopes to reach a whole new audience with the launch of a new gaming app. As well as continuing to host farm safety workshops in schools around the country, Alma is also exploring the export

market at present. She is already exporting to the UK and is currently working with a publisher in the US on Americanising her books, “turning sheds into barns”. She runs the business out of the family farm in Julianstown, Co Meath and, despite being on a crusade to highlight the farm safety message, Alma still loves family life on the farm. One of the most prominent quotes on her website is a quote from her granny: “Where there’s muck, there’s luck”.

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Energia Gets Ireland Growing Energia is supporting Grow It Yourself, which offers practical advice and information in communities across Ireland.

GIY (Grow It Yourself) are delighted to announce the return of our showcase community campaign in partnership with the brilliant, enlightened kindred spirits at Energia, Ireland’s greenest energy company. Energia Get Ireland Growing will support food growing in community groups across the island of Ireland with a fund of €70,000! The fund will be split across three categories – Sow, Grow and Harvest – with awards ranging from €500 to €2,000. Together GIY and Energia will award the grants to at least 85 community food growing groups up and down the country. GIY Community Manager Karen O’Donohoe is very enthusiastic about the project. “GIY is delighted to team up with Energia. Our partnering enables us to roll out what will be some incredible opportunities for people right across the country to get involved with next year, all around growing food and sustainable living. It’s a very exciting partnership and we look forward to sharing more details with everyone in the very near future.”

Community food growing is at the very heart of GIY. Over the years GIY groups have been established in libraries, halls, schools and gardens in urban and rural communities. All over Ireland, the UK and the world, people gather to share their

GIY Community Manager Karen O’Donohoe with Yvonne Boyle from Energia.

knowledge, offer practical advice and moral support. Groups are comprised of everyone, from those with ‘hoe how’ to people who don’t know their hoe from their elbow and everyone in between!

GIY and other groups have created school gardens and community allotments, transformed derelict spaces, brought life, colour and positivity to juvenile and rehabilitation centres and provided a dignified outlet for people in direct provision centres. Something as simple as people coming together over a packet of seeds and a mug of tea can make a huge difference. The world can be put to rights whilst digging over a vegetable patch.

To do great community work requires resources. Mugs of tea can only fuel so much. Clearing space for an inner-city community garden, putting a polytunnel on a school roof, turning a roundabout into an edible garden and creating a pond at an allotment depends on funding. As resourceful as community groups are, nothing beats a cheque in the door. And a cheque that comes with the message “you can do this, we support you” is ten times better.

That’s where Energia comes in. One

Michael (GIY), Amy (Energia), Karen (GIY) and Geoff (Energia).

of the top renewable energy companies in Ireland, Energia is committed to developing renewable and sustainable energy sources in Ireland. What also drew GIY to Energia as a partner is their deep commitment to their employees’ health and well-being. A little like companion planting, pair up the GIY community of 150,000 clever, resourceful people with Energia, Ireland’s greenest energy provider, and you get perfect synergy.

Full details of the Energia Get Ireland Growing Fund, including how to apply for a grant, are available on giyinternational.org. Follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @EnergiaGIG for all the latest updates!

FOR MORE, SEE WWW.GIYINTERNATIONAL.ORG

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GROW HQ, GIY’S NATIONAL FOOD EDUCATION CENTRE NOW OPEN IN WATERFORD Set on a four acre site on the edge of the city, Grow HQ is an oasis in an urban landscape. Our experts will teach you to grow your own fruit and veg, cook healthy meals, ferment food at home, grow and blend your own green smoothies and so much more.

Enjoy delicious home grown, organic and chemical free local food at our ethical café.

Visit our gorgeous shop full of stylish homewares, and all of the growing tools, books and seeds you could ever need.

With a GROW HQ voucher you can treat the people in your life to the gift of health and knowledge.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or call us on 051 584422

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02/12/2016 15:13 12:03

ENVIRONMENT

Taking on Action Flooding

THE FLOODING EVENTS OF WINTER 2015 DEVASTATED HOMES, BUSINESSES AND PEOPLE’S LIVES. BUT WERE ANY LESSONS LEARNED IN THE INTERVENING MONTHS? IAN MALENEY REPORTS.

There are few more devastating weather events in Ireland than serious flooding. In recent years, the residents of the Shannon basin have faced repeated battles to limit the damage done to homes, businesses and farms by near-annual flooding.

On a personal level the effects can be tragic, ranging from the loss of treasured possessions to the costly destruction of houses, roads and transport links.

People may be out of their homes for months while the damage is repaired; some may have to relocate altogether.

The problem is naturally multifaceted, and the means of dealing with it need to be practical and immediate as well as strategic and sustainable. Flooding is a bureaucratic and political issue in that it brings together different government departments and agencies to work on it, but it is also an environmental one as the various habitats and landscapes affected all have to be cared for in different ways. It’s an issue that brings together rural and urban dwellers, as each face similar but distinct problems during the course of the flood. What works for one party might not work for another, and a solution that suits everyone has, so far at least, been elusive.

PREPARATION

The winter of 2015 was a particularly bad year for floods along the River Shannon, with towns and townlands from Leitrim to Limerick badly affected by the heavy rains and sluggish drainage. In Athlone, the residents were well prepared; they’d seen it all before in 2009 and 2011 and were ready to muck in, stack sandbags and pump water to protect homes. At the heart of those efforts was Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran, then a local councillor in Athlone and now Independent Alliance TD for Westmeath and Longford. Though he says people in his constituency are concerned as winter rolls around again, he is convinced that Athlone and its surrounding lands are better prepared than ever to deal with any flooding.

“I’ll be there for the people again this year but I don’t believe it’ll go to that,” he says. “The local authority district engineer Pat Nally and the director of services Barry Kehoe have done immense work. Everywhere we set up a pumping station last year, where there was water coming from drains, coming into gullies and flooding places, we’ve now non-return valves on all of those. Last

year, the roads were flooded but we protected the homes. This time, what we’ve done will go a long way to help that. I believe we’re ready for it, if it comes.”

Working with fellow Independent Alliance TD Sean Canney, Minister for State at the Office of Public Works and Flood Relief, Moran now shares the responsibility of devising and implementing long-term plans to ease the problem of flooding across the whole country. It’s a different challenge to the crisis mode of last winter, but it’s one he sees himself and the Minister well placed to meet.

“For the first time in the history of the State, someone has gone into Government knowing a bit about flooding,” he says with a smile. “I would say that every local authority is more equipped and more ready than any other time. I know the Minister is meeting with the Working Group which was set up with the Civil Defence and the Army, and the Taoiseach himself is getting them ready for a hard winter, in case they’re required. It’s not just for flooding; it’s for salting roads, wind, storms, anything like that. We are now, I feel, in a better position to be able to protect people.”

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ENVIRONMENT

ABOVE: IFA members protesting against a lack of action on flooding during an OPW public consultation in Athlone. BELOW (L to R): Padraic Joyce, IFA Flood Project Chairman, spoke at the protest in Athlone IFA; President Joe Healy also took to the stage, calling on the Government to lay out a plan of action. Photos courtesy IFA

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ENVIRONMENT

Pictured at a recent meeting with the OPW were Padraic Joyce, IFA Flood Chair; Minister of State for the Office of Public Works and Flood Relief, Sean Canney; and Joe Healy

“DEALING WITH THESE PROBLEMS REQUIRES SERIOUS INVESTIGATION, CONSTRUCTION AND CONSERVATION WORK, PROCESSES WHICH WILL TAKE BOTH TIME AND MONEY TO COMPLETE. FOR MANY RURAL RESIDENTS, AND FARMERS IN PARTICULAR, THINGS SIMPLY AREN’T MOVING FAST ENOUGH.” In October, Canney and Moran announced €6m in funding for flood defences in Athlone, while millions more have been made available across the country in various flood relief packages.

Moran has also been vocal in encouraging people to apply for the Small Remedial Works scheme, which will help homeowners, in combination with their local authority, to make changes to their properties which would protect them from flooding in the future. A relocation grant is to be made available to those for whom such changes would make no significant difference, and a flood warning system is being developed by Met Éireann which would help to alert people and give them time to prepare, should the worst be about to happen. These are small but necessary initiatives which might, in the short-term at least, provide some comfort to those most badly affected.

On a structural level, Moran points to 16 “pinch points” along the River Shannon which contribute hugely to the flooding, and he is hopeful that a pilot scheme may be undertaken at one particularly bad point near Banagher in County Offaly. He also mentions issues related to Parteen Weir and Ardnacrusha, two hydroelectric power stations on the

river through which the ESB control the speed and depth of the river’s flow. Dealing with these problems requires serious investigation, construction and conservation work, processes which will take both time and money to complete. For many rural residents, and farmers in particular, things simply aren’t moving fast enough.

“There has been very, very little maintenance done on the river,” says Padraic Joyce, IFA spokesperson on flooding. “The OPW should have been doing maintenance on the River Shannon for the last many years that the flooding has come. We talk about one in one hundred years, but it has now come twice in the last six years and has been dangerously high in other years. The height of the river is an issue as well. At this time of year, when there is very little boating going on on the River Shannon, we feel the levels could be lower.”

FINDING BALANCE

Balancing the immediate needs of people in the vicinity of the Shannon with the environmental demands of the river has not been easy. Joyce is particularly critical of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), who he feels are hindering progress in relation to construction work on the river. He

feels also that the study undertaken

by Catchment Flood Risk Assessment and Management (CFRAM) has focused too much on urban and built-up areas, at the expense of farmers who face very different challenges.

“It is important to protect houses, and we recognise this, but when you’re protecting a large town by putting up barriers, you’re pushing the water further along, faster,” he says. “There is a balance there and we don’t want to see any houses being flooded, but at the same time, we’ve got to protect rural houses and rural farmyards. Farmers are trying to protect livestock from being flooded, they’re risking their own lives.”

One particular issue facing farmers who have been repeatedly flooded in recent years is the potential loss of payments on land, and the need to constantly call on neighbours for help can cause significant strain in communities. “Some houses were saved last year but it took a community effort, round the clock with pumps, to keep the water out,” says Joyce. “It’s not something that farmers can always be calling on their neighbours to help them keep the water out of their house and their farmyards. If the land is flooded for a considerable period, maybe two, three years, they’ll lose their payments on that land. It’ll be recognised as worthless.”

Ultimately, everyone involved seems to agree that more serious efforts are now being made to deal with the issue of flooding in a comprehensive manner.

Joyce says that the devastation of last year focused minds on the task at hand, and there is no doubt that the election of Moran and Canney in February signalled the ongoing importance of the issue to the public. For Moran, the memories of previous battles are more than enough to keep him motivated for the first winter in his new job.

“I know the Shannon, I know the lake, I know what needs to be done,” he says. “What it needs is time to make it work and make it happen.

There’s nothing that can compare to the hardship, from the farming community to livestock to the human and the pain and grief that was caused to families, the hardship of getting from one estate to another and likewise in rural areas where people were cut off, people crying, people suffering – I don’t want to see that again.”

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Investing in Forestry Protect your future income by investing in farm forestry.

It can be argued that making decisions now on how to protect your income in the future is as relevant for farmers as it is for institutional investors. One smart option for farmers to consider is forestry. This investment is insulated to a large extent from market fluctuations because, if prices are low, you can decide to wait before clearfelling the timber until the price improves. In fact timber prices have improved over recent years and analysis shows that demand will exceed supply for both timber and biomass in Ireland for the foreseeable future.

In situations where land is underutilised and farmers are reluctant to reduce their herd size, planting trees can bring an entire farm closer to its productive potential, introducing a stable and additional income which can be used to develop the farm business. Forestry can also be used as security for borrowing. Under the Department’s restructured afforestation scheme an annual premium is paid each year for 15 years. Most farmers who plant receive €510/hectare income tax free. Furthermore, forestry is compatible with the Basic

Payment Scheme and under certain conditions is also compatible with GLAS. As well as the payment of an annual premium for 15 years, the Department will also cover 100 per cent of the cost of establishment.

The new afforestation scheme offers greater flexibility in terms of the type of forestry that can be established. Agro forestry is available for farmers who wish to continue to graze the land while also growing trees on the same land. Where farmers do not want to wait 35-40 years before clearfell, the planting of faster growing trees such as poplar or eucalyptus is a good option. Forests planted under this scheme can be felled after 10-15 years. Grants and premiums are available for both agro forestry and forestry for fibre.

There is plenty of support available for farmers who are considering forestry as a land use. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine would encourage landowners to contact their local Teagasc forestry advisor or registered forester to find out more about farm forestry.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION VISIT WWW.TEAGASC.IE/CROPS/FORESTRY OR WWW.AGRICULTURE.GOV.IE/FORESTSERVICE/GRANTSANDPREMIUMSCHEMES2015-2016

The following represents some of the reasons why farmers invest in farm forestry: • Under the Forestry Programme the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine covers the full cost of establishment; • An annual premium is paid for 15 years; most new forests attract 510 per hectare per year income tax free; • Forestry is compatible with the Basic Payment Scheme and under certain conditions is also compatible with GLAS; • Where land is underutilised, forestry can help use the land closer to its productive potential without reducing farm output;

FARM FORESTRY, WHY LANDOWNERS SHOULD PLANT TREES

• Price volatility is a feature of agriculture commodity markets. Forestry on the other hand is insulated to some extent from market fluctuations because, if prices are low, you can decide to wait before harvesting the timber; • Forestry is good for the environment. It has a role in protecting water quality and in climate change mitigation through carbon sequestration and by replacing fossil fuels with a renewable source of energy.

The benefits of forestry are being realised by an increasing number of farmers and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine would encourage landowners to contact their local Teagasc forestry advisor or registered forester to find out more about farm forestry. www.teagasc.ie/crops/forestry/ www.agriculture.gov.ie/forestservice/ grantsandpremiumschemes2015-2016/

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LAW

Backing Irish Farmers AISLING MEEHAN OF AGRICULTURAL SOLICITORS EXPLORES THE LOW COST AGRI LOANS ANNOUNCED IN BUDGET 2017.

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LAW Ministers Michael Noonan and Paschal Donohoe

WHAT CAN THESE LOANS BE USED FOR? The loans are aimed at strategically alleviating the pressures of income volatility, the Minister has said. The loans will enable farmers to improve the management of their cashflow and reduce the cost of their short-term borrowings. It is expected that the funds will be used to clear expensive co-op/ merchant credit and overdraft facilities. However it is anticipated that the loans can also cover capital investment such as buildings and machinery which were financed through cashflow.

WHAT FARMERS CAN APPLY? The loan fund is open to all farmers meaning livestock, tillage and horticulture farmers can apply for the loans. However further conditions may be imposed such as being a member of a Bord Bia quality assurance scheme, part of a Department of Agriculture agri-environment scheme, part of a co-op quality assurance scheme, having completed a course with Teagasc or having completed a financial or farm sustainability training course with a co-op.

PHOTO: MERRIONSTREET.IE

HOW MUCH CAN A FARMER BORROW?

The Minister for Finance Michael Noonan announced on Budget day plans for a €150m agriculture cashflow support fund. The loan scheme is to be developed by the Department of Agriculture in partnership with the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI). The SBCI is the Government-backed agency charged with sourcing lower cost funding through the European Investment Bank, for example, which can then be lent on to SMEs and farm businesses at lower rates than the banks are charging. The purpose of the SBCI is to increase competition in the Irish banking sector. It has been in operation for two years. While the finer details of the loan scheme have yet to be agreed, the main provisions are as follows.

Farmers can borrow up to a maximum amount of €150,000 and there is no minimum level of borrowing, according to the Minister. It is expected that given the short-term length of these loans (maximum period of six years), very few farmers will borrow the maximum amount. Given that the purpose of the loans is to clear expensive co-op/merchant credit and overdraft facilities, it is anticipated that the average loan will be in the region of €30,000 to €40,000.

WHAT IS THE TERM OF THE LOAN? The maximum term of the loan is six years, with the option of having interest-only payments for up to three years at the start of the loan period.

WHAT IS THE INTEREST RATE? The interest rate is 2.95 per cent, which is much more competitive than the average lending rate (currently 5 to 6 per cent) or 12 to 14 per cent rates applied to merchant credit/co-op credit. The proposed interest rate will represent a significant saving to farmers when compared with other forms of finance currently available.

HOW WILL A FARMER KNOW IF HE/ SHE IS ELIGIBLE FOR A LOAN? Normal lending assessment criteria will apply,

which means that farmers will need to show repayment capacity. If a farmer has other loans, all of these will be considered in calculating repayment capacity. The Department has said that eligibility for livestock farmers will be in line with the conditions laid down in the EU exceptional adjustment aid regulation. Meanwhile, loans to non-livestock farmers will be subject to de minimis State aid requirements, it said.

IS SECURITY REQUIRED? The Minister has confirmed that security such as giving a first legal charge over land will not be required to secure the loan.

WILL ALL BANKS OFFER THESE LOANS? It is understood that a tender will be issued to commercial banks, such as AIB and Bank of Ireland, to apply for the scheme. The Minister confirmed that he has spoken to Bank of Ireland, AIB, and Ulster Bank. However, he also highlighted that it is open to other financial institutions.

WHEN DOES THE LOAN HAVE TO BE DRAWN DOWN BY? The Minister for Agriculture has said that loans will have to be drawn down by September 2017.

WHEN WILL FARMERS BE ABLE TO APPLY? It is hoped that farmers will be able to apply for these loans in early January 2017. The Minister is encouraging farmers to consider their cashflow and borrowings situation now, and if appropriate, to be prepared to apply for these loans when they become available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Aisling Meehan is a solicitor, chartered tax adviser and qualified farmer specialising in agricultural law and taxation.

Email aisling@agriculturalsolicitors.ie.

Disclaimer: This article is intended as a general guide only and professional advice should be sought in all cases. This paper was compiled on the basis of information available on November 1st 2016. Whilst every care is taken to ensure the accuracy of information contained in this article, the author and/or Aisling Meehan, Agricultural Solicitors does not accept responsibility for errors or omissions howsoever arising.

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FORESTRY

the

woods trees beyond the

MORE AND MORE FARMERS ARE SEEING THE BENEFITS OF GROWING TREES, BOLSTERED

BY COILLTE PROMOTIONAL EFFORTS AND GOVERNMENT INCENTIVES. HOWEVER, THERE ARE CHALLENGES THAT THE INDUSTRY MUST SURMOUNT, INCLUDING LOCAL OPPOSITION, WRITES JOE FINEGAN.

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FORESTRY

I

magine if a product produced in Ireland could be manufactured three times faster than in many other countries. Think of the advantages.

Think of the export figures. Think of the value to the exchequer. Ireland would be a global superstar.

Guess what? There is a product like that – timber. Trees can grow three times quicker in certain parts of Ireland than in Scandinavian countries. A timber harvest from plantation to clear-fell normally takes around 25 years. The same cycle in Nordic countries can take as long as 100 years. Foresters in Ireland could reap two clear-fells in their lifetime. However, the industry is a relatively new one to Ireland.

Government incentives introduced in the 1980s provided a big financial boost to private afforestation with land cover rising from about 25,000 hectares in the mid-1990s to around 800,000ha today.

Forestry education over the past 30 years has exploded. Expert knowledge is abundant. This is reflected in the most recent Budget, in which €111.6m was allocated to forestry development. This allows for some 7,100ha of new forest to be planted (800ha more than 2015) and approximately 110km of forest road (allowing haulage access to transport timber). To private foresters, including farmers who plant forests, each acre of trees earns a premium from the Government of somewhere around €250, depending on tree type. That payment continues for 15 years, and the Government helps financially with planting, thinning and harvesting.

Sounds like a win-win situation, according to Coillte Forest’s Managing Director Gerard Murphy, who is responsible for managing the state’s 440,000ha (approximately 6 per cent of land in Ireland). “There’s a great opportunity for the industry over the next 15 years because the new forests planted in the last 20 years will be harvested and we expect nearly a doubling of output in that time,” says Murphy, who has worked in forest research, inventory, sales and marketing, harvesting and overseas consulting, before taking on his current role. In figures, that means around 2.8 million m3 of roundwood should climb to 5 million m3. “That means more revenue,” Murphy continues. “We’ve a really big market in Britain, who have the industries in place to take all of our product. But that

is not without its own challenges.”

Brexit.

That’s the dirty word on every forester’s lips nowadays.

“About 75-80 per cent of our timber goes to the UK and it’s causing a lot of nervousness in the industry. When Britain voted to leave the EU, there was a 25 per cent devaluation straight away. For every 1c movement in the exchange rate between the pound and the euro, for our business, it is equal to approximately €1 million.

That sort of devaluation causes shock.

The affects haven’t hit the growers yet, but there has been a drop in log prices recently which is having a major impact with processors and sawmills. There is a feeling of deep unease, but not panic yet,” says Murphy. “Despite the Brexit challenges, we have growing output, presenting tremendous opportunities. However, mobilisation presents another challenge – how to fell the tree, transport, mill and export it. Because forestry is still a new economic activity, we still need to educate people. There are issues with poor access roads but if we can overcome this, we can probably double our value, and provide a significant increase in employment in rural areas too. Thankfully, the recent Budget has started to shift some funds towards mobilisation.”

With plans in motion to combat Brexit, and with funds being allocated to help export trees, what’s the pared down value of a tree to a farmer? Pat Collins, IFA Forestry Chairperson since April

“PERHAPS LEITRIM, AND PARTS OF CAVAN AND SLIGO, IS ATTRACTING MORE THAN ITS FAIR SHARE OF FORESTRY INVESTMENT, MAINLY DUE TO FAVOURABLE SOIL HELPING TREES GROW QUICKLY.” 2016, breaks it down. An average of 500 trees can be planted per hectare, with each tree valued between €50 and €60.

A farmer with 8ha (which is the average family holding) could have earned around €240,000 at the clear-fell stage. “It’s a great source of income,” says Collins, himself a farmer from Ballintubber, Co Roscommon. “It’s my job to help farmers understand the value of their timber.

Forestry can work hand-in-hand with agricultural farming. I advise farmers to research forestry with an open mind and work out their financial return.”

With Ireland being a young forestry state, first generation foresters are still finding their feet. “We don’t have a history of forestry like the Nordic countries, but we’re getting there. Forestry products are worth about €360m to Ireland; softwood exports are about €125m; panel board exports are €200m. Almost

A Coillte harvesting site

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FORESTRY

Left: Gerard Murphy, MD, Coillte. Photo: Eugene Langan Photography. Right: Pat Collins, IFA Forestry Chair. Photo: Finbarr O’Rourke

80 per cent of our timber goes to the UK. It’s a huge market that is right beside us,” says Collins. “With Brexit, there’ll be challenges with the value of sterling fluctuating, but we had that in the past too. With forward planning and thinking and marketing, we’re up to the challenge.

Ireland has some of the best sawmills in Europe and Government support has been fantastic. With Brexit, there may be an initial drop off, but we’re still trading and concentrating on keeping the market open.”

Coillte are playing their part. Although they are not involved in afforestation, they reforest about 6,500ha per year.

That equates to around 18 million trees planted per year. “Coillte cannot avail of the grants open to private foresters,” says Murphy, a forester by trade. “Forestry is a rural based industry that employs around 12,000 people. They are a good long-term investment – we have to sell the value of forests to potential planters. In Leitrim there is resistance to more forest cover, which currently stands at 16 per cent. That is roughly the same as Wicklow, but there is not the same level of resistance there, where forests are culturally embedded. If locals are concerned, perhaps we’re not selling the benefits of forest hard enough.”

GROWTH AND OPPOSITION Eltjo Van Der Laan already knows the benefits of planting forests. He came to Ireland from Holland in 1980 with his wife Marion and bought Lawderdale House in Ballinamore, Co Leitrim with money they had earned producing wooden furniture.

Learning about the grants that were available to foresters, Eltjo immediately began growing trees, using wood available on his doorstep to continue to make furniture. Today, Eltjo and Marion manage 820 acres of forests, one of the largest private estates in the country, and have plans to continue expanding their

forest empire for the foreseeable future.

“We looked at different countries around Europe to migrate to, but we love it here and wouldn’t do anything else.

Crops grow in 30 years here while they would take 100 years in the Scandinavian countries. If you have the money to buy the land, then it pays for itself. The 8 per cent per annum growth is a terrific rate of return,” he explains. “If I am interested in buying a farm, I will ask the neighbours to see if they are interested. If they are, I walk away. I have encountered opposition from people who would prefer not to see land planted with forest. I have had digger windows smashed, and even some veiled death threats. There are local meetings organised to explain about forests and discuss plans, but they are mostly attended by ‘Forest Out’ people.”

The main gripe among Leitrim residents is that forests are taking over the county.

People feel edged out by forests, which are being planted at a ferocious rate and creeping closer and closer to villages and towns. People are feeling swamped, strangled and surrounded by trees. Colm Stenson, a 32-year-old part-time suckler farmer in Leitrim, bought 45 acres and built his house on the land for himself and his wife. His land borders agricultural land owned by bachelor farmers. Colm’s fear is that when his neighbours pass on, in the absence of heirs their land will be sold to investment firms and turned into forestry.

“I don’t want to live in a situation where I’ve got trees but no neighbours,” he says. “I regularly drive along a road three miles long that is always dark because of the forests there. I’m nervous for the future. At the moment, there are no forests within a mile of my home, but beyond that, forest cover is extensive. In the future, if trees are planted on the land, the land base for me to expand my farm is reduced.” Buying up large swathes of land

to preserve as agricultural land is not an option for Colm, nor many farmers like him. Banks, many farmers claim, are very slow to issue loans to farmers for farming.

Banks are said to prefer issuing loans for forestry where Government subsidies are much higher and more reliable, meaning farmers are left feeling isolated.

Perhaps Leitrim, and parts of Cavan and Sligo, is attracting more than its fair share of forestry investment, mainly due to favourable soil helping trees grow quickly. But the locals are feeling pushed out. “Where you have trees, you don’t have people,” they claim. Locals quickly point out that village shops and schools are closing, but Gerard Murphy’s view is that forests are not forcing people to leave. “There are lots of socio-economic factors going on. In 20 years’ time, those forests will be the new industry in these places. There is a bit of a fear among people generally regarding forests, and I understand that, but a much wider debate is needed on it. Some land is not suitable to agriculture, so why not plant forests on it? Forests are viewed in different ways: In Leitrim it is negative; in Wicklow it is positive. Nordic people love having forests all around them – it’s a cultural mindset.”

Pat Collins, who represents farmers of all kinds in Leitrim, wants traditional farmers and foresters to come to an agreement. “Leitrim has the best growing conditions in Europe so we must educate farmers on how to grow timber, to sell it, to market it,” he says. “We must learn how to sell our product, and grow the industry and see it thrive. The value of timber to the economy will continue to grow. Trees and forests should become part of the Irish psyche. Forestry should complement farming.”

Currently, 11 per cent of Ireland is under cover. The target set by the Government is 18 per cent by 2030. To meet it, the tension must be eased one tree at a time.

“IRELAND BEING A YOUNG FORESTRY STATE, FIRST GENERATION FORESTERS ARE STILL FINDING THEIR FEET.”

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Gleeson Steel and Engineering LTD: A Manufacturing Success Take advantage of a range of solutions combining quality, durability and experience.

Founded in 1968 by the Gleeson family, Gleeson Steel & Engineering Ltd. has since developed, through hard work and a dedication to quality, into one of the largest steel fabricators within the Munster region, and the company’s products and processes have continued to evolve to meet the demands of an increasingly competitive steel market.

One of the largest employers in the rural area of Gortnahoe in Co Tipperary, the firm’s staff are trained and certified in every aspect of steel fabrication, facilitating the delivery of steel products which are measured and cut to precision.

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solutions to the commercial sector, the firm has a wealth of experience within the agricultural sector and, when it comes to farm buildings, Gleeson Steel & Engineering is unrivalled in the south, having supplied and erected farm buildings all over Munster and further afield. That success is driven in part by its attention to detail throughout all stages of the process. The company works with customers from the design stage of a farm building through to the finishing touches, ensuring that the customer is happy with the product, and also with the work and the service provided.

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www.gleesonsteel.co.uk 24/11/2016 07/11/2016 15:26 17:51

MACHINERY

keeping it

Vintage

INTERESTED IN INVESTING IN A VINTAGE TRACTOR? EAR TO THE GROUND SPOKE WITH IRISH VINTAGE SCENE EDITOR THOMAS HEAVEY TO DISCOVER A LITTLE MORE ABOUT THE INTRICACIES OF THIS POPULAR HOBBY. In the eyes and minds of those who collect and appreciate them, vintage tractors are wonderful machines, relics from bygone eras that are lovingly restored and placed on display at the numerous vintage meets and events which take place across the country every month. It’s a popular hobby in which thousands of Irish people engage – perhaps unsurprising give our country’s long association with rural life and farming.

“It may have changed in more recent years with the cities getting bigger, but our heritage is still in farming in this country,” says Thomas Heavey, editor with Irish Vintage Scene (www. irishvintagescene.ie) “I think that the small farmers always had a close association with their tractors, so for that reason I think that you’ll find that it’s a very popular hobby here – because of our connection with the farm and with the land back the years.”

If you’re considering investing in your very first vintage tractor, and you’re not entirely aware of what you should or could buy first, it can be a very confusing process. In Ireland, two of the most popular makes and models are the Ferguson TE20 (the brainchild of Co Down man Harry Ferguson) and, of

course, the Ford. “The Ferguson 20 was in many cases the first tractor that arrived on the farm, and it was the tractor that took over from the horse or the donkey, whichever they had. For that reason there is a huge connection with the Ferguson tractor in this country,” Heavey explains. “The Ford name was a strong name on the farm as well in the early days. Ferguson and Ford are the most popular, and then it goes down the line from there.”

If you’re new to the scene, Heavey suggests getting involved with a vintage club. Unlike cars, which can be found in their thousands on the likes of Carzone or DoneDeal, vintage tractors often change hands at vintage shows or among friends. It’s also a great way to meet some like-minded people, who will often have decades of experience in buying and restoring vintage vehicles which they’ll undoubtedly be only too happy to share. “Getting into a club and the scene is really your way of getting out there and getting started in that hobby of collecting tractors,” he says. “We list all of the shows that are on around the country, we report on all the events and we [have] news of all the tractor events coming up. Every month we feature

two different tractors – we have details on the tractors and the owners’ details as well if people need to contact them.”

And, when you’ve picked out a suitable model, Heavey recommends taking someone who knows a thing or two about tractors along to the viewing – even if you’re an old hand, sometimes a second opinion can prove fruitful. “If the tractor is unrestored then you have a great starting point in that you can restore it to your standards as you go along. Or if it is restored, it has to be to a standard that you’re happy with and that the quality of the work was good,” he says. “You really need to make sure that you have somebody that knows the model of tractor that you’re buying. Even if you know it well yourself, I would still advise that you bring somebody else along with you to look at it.”

Ask anyone who’s involved in the vintage tractor scene and they’ll encourage you to jump onboard. It’s a great hobby to be involved in, with the chance to showcase and test out your pride and joy at tractor runs, static shows and even working days. “Working shows are very interesting. Because you see the tractor actually working, and that’s what it was made for,” says Heavey. “The hobby has great variety for people.”

making a difference There’s a strong sense of community and a charitable spirit among Ireland’s vintage enthusiasts, no more epitomised by Castledermot Vintage Club in Co Kildare. The Club runs an annual Threshing and Vintage Working Day in late September, a two-day affair that attracts vintage vehicles across the spectrum, including steam engines and a line-up of gleaming tractors and farm machinery. Each year they present the proceeds to worthy causes throughout the community, and have donated in the region of €150,000 over the past ten years. “Everything goes to charity. We keep it all as local as we can, from the GAA to the soccer to the local choir, and the community centre that was being built,” explains club PRO Rita Horan. “Anybody who is sick in the town, we help them to keep their treatment going, or make their hospital journeys easier for them.” For more information, or to get involved in this active vintage club, search ‘Castledermot Vintage Club’ on Facebook.

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MACHINERY

“TWO OF THE MOST POPULAR MAKES AND MODELS IN IRELAND ARE THE FERGUSON 20 (THE BRAINCHILD OF CO DOWN MAN HARRY FERGUSON) AND, OF COURSE, THE FORD.”

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Breaking Boundaries With the imminent launch of the new ŠKODA Kodiaq, Jozef Kabaň, ŠKODA’s Head of Design, explains how the brand is becoming much more emotive.

Q: What does the design of the ŠKODA Kodiaq mean for the brand?

A: The ŠKODA Kodiaq is a pioneer for our brand in two respects. We are entering a new segment with our first large SUV above the Yeti. And at the same time, the Kodiaq is the first model with the new ŠKODA SUV design language. It is powerful and emotive, but also timeless.

Q: What is special about the design language of your large SUV? A: The ŠKODA Kodiaq is extremely versatile. It is exceptionally spacious and with compact external dimensions, it delivers the best overall package in its class. It is also robust, suits all types of terrain and offers the best flexibility and functionality. We wanted to visualise this in the exterior design as well as the interior. Form and functionality are therefore in harmony in the ŠKODA Kodiaq. The crystalline and striking appearance also underlines the strength and character of the ŠKODA Kodiaq.

Q: How does one combine design and functionality?

A: We aspire to combine the highest degree of aesthetics with maximum functionality in such a way that one no longer speaks of different criteria. We are searching for beauty in simplicity, without disregarding functionality or ergonomics. A good design makes functionality attractive. This balance of functionality and aesthetics makes our ŠKODA Kodiaq special.

Q: What role does Czech crystal glass art play in this?

A: Every detail of our models tells a story, that is the emotive power of the brand. We were inspired by traditional Czech crystal glass art for the crystalline elements of the ŠKODA Kodiaq. The lines are clear, precise and sharply drawn.

The distinctive interplay of light and shade on the strongly contoured surfaces is distinctive. The crystalline structure is also present in the details, such as the headlights or decorative trims.

Q: You can see the creativity and great attention to detail that also went into designing the interior. What do you consider the most interesting design feature of the ŠKODA Kodiaq’s interior?

A: We are carrying the exterior’s wide, clear lines forward into the interior. And the emphasis here is on the harmony between form and functionality, on calm and clarity. For me, a car has to function perfectly and also radiate aesthetics. An interior should spark feelings of trust and well-being. From this philosophy, we have created an atmosphere that is elegant, comfortable and functional at the same time.

IRISH ARRIVAL

Named for the Kodiak bear that lives on Kodiaq Island off the southern coast of Alaska, the new ŠKODA Kodiaq will arrive in Ireland in March 2017. Pricing and specification has yet to be confirmed, but the Kodiaq will be the brand’s flagship model, with new technologies available including ŠKODA Connect mobile online services. Based on the impressive VisionS concept shown at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show, the new Kodiaq offers an impressive combination of powerful design, generous space, great functionality, state-of-the art assistance systems and innovative connectivity solutions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON ŠKODA, VISIT: WWW.SKODA.IE. 76 EAR TO THE GROUND

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TRAVEL IN STYLE. TRAVEL IN SPACE.

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Imagine a car that blurs the line between beauty and functionality. Where style and spaciousness are in perfect harmony. Where there’s room for everything, except compromise. We imagined such a car and we call it the new ŠKODA Superb. Longer, wider, taller, lighter and packed with the latest technologies, the new Superb represents 120 years of forward thinking. From €26,995, the Superb will be one of the most talked about cars of 2016. Call into your local ŠKODA dealer and see the all-new Superb for yourself.

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Clever inside The most popular Superb model, the Ambition, is available with a host of standard features such as: Bi-Xenon Headlights with LED day time lights

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Terms and conditions apply. RRP prices displayed exclude dealer delivery and related fees. Typical Finance Example: Superb OTRP €27,595. Deposit / Part Exchange €8,519. 36 monthly payments of €289 (Including service plan of €13.99 per month). Optional Final Payment €10,798. Total cost of credit €1,772.50. Total hire purchase price €29,368. Minimum deposit is 10%. Subject to lending criteria. This offer is made under a hire purchase agreement. ŠKODA Finance is a trading style of Volkswagen Bank GmbH Branch Ireland, authorised by the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority in Germany and regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland for conduct of business rules. Images used for illustrative purposes only.

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07/09/2016 17:24 24/11/2016 12/10/2016 15:33 15:56

ADVERTISING FEATURE

get winter ready Calor’s Greengear sustainable technology provides an efficient, low carbon alternative to protect your home and business this winter.

Between storms and floods, Ireland’s winters are increasingly taking their toll on homes around the country. In 2014, many Irish homes experienced loss of power through storm damage; in 2015, thousands of Irish people suffered the hardship of flooding. You cannot control the weather, but you can prepare for the worst it can throw at you. This winter, Greengear from Calor is helping Irish homes to prepare for nature’s worst, with a range of LPGpowered generators and water pumps.

Greengear products are designed for outdoor use, delivering reliability in the changeable conditions that Irish

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homeowners are used to. The Greengear range of generators run from 2-7kw and are designed to deliver reliable power when you need it most. Greengear water and sewage pumps are ideal for dealing with flooding and are a must for farmers living in flood risk areas.

Powered by Calor LPG, Greengear machines deliver a 50 per cent carbon emission saving over petrol-driven equivalents. Not only are Greengear products better for the environment, they

also save you money. On average, LPGpowered generators are 30 per cent less expensive to operate than their petrolpowered equivalents.

“Calor are proud to introduce Greengear machines to the Irish market. These innovative machines harness the most up-to-date technology to deliver superior value for money and emissions savings.

Greengear offers a real win-win for consumers,” says Damien Shirkie, Market Development Specialist with Calor.

TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT CALOR-POWERED GREENGEAR MACHINES OR TO IDENTIFY YOUR NEAREST STOCKIST, VISIT WWW.CALORGAS.IE/GREENGEAR

CONCERNED ABOUT FLOODING? Calor powered Greengear water pumps.

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Visit calorgas.ie/greengear to find your nearest stockist or purchase online at shop.calorgas.ie

78 EAR TO THE GROUND

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INDUSTRY

Given the right supports and structures, energy crops grown by Irish farmers have the potential to change the face of Ireland’s energy supply. Somewhere in the region of half of the energy required to meet binding EU renewable energy targets for 2020 is expected to come from bioenergy – renewable energy obtained from living organisms such as plants. Ireland’s target as part of the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) is to have 16 per cent of our total energy consumption (across electricity, transport and heating) come from renewable sources, which we’re on target to meet.

Until now most of the emphasis on alternative energy sources in Ireland has focused on renewable energy like solar or wind farms. On a European level, converting biomass (organic matter) to biofuel has long since moved out of the experimental stage, though in Ireland this development

Building Up

Biomass BIOENERGY IS A SECTOR THAT HAS HUGE POTENTIAL, NOT JUST FOR IRISH FARMERS BUT THE COUNTRY AS A WHOLE. BUT IS ENOUGH BEING DONE TO SUPPORT ITS GROWTH?

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INDUSTRY

Know Solar Power Solar photovoltaic (PV) is one of a number of renewable technologies, alongside biomass and biogas, which will help Ireland meet its renewable targets by 2020. Widespread anticipation of a tariff to support the development of large scale projects has led to “what can only be described as a feeding frenzy among PV project developers who are pursuing suitable sites of 10-12ha (25-30 acres) ideally which are located within a short distance of the grid-connected substation.

There are also possibilities of roof-mounted PV arrays which may suit poultry or pig units with high electricity demand,” says Barry Caslin.

At the moment no subsidies or supports are available for solar PV, though developers are engaging with farmers in anticipation of such subsidies becoming available. Caslin advises farmers to be cautious in signing exclusivity deals and option agreements with developers, and to discuss the taxation implications with their accountant, and the terms and conditions of any lease with a solicitor.

is taking place at a much slower pace.

Farmers are key to increasing our bioenergy output but profitability is one of the major issues they face. However, as Teagasc Bioenergy Specialist Barry Caslin explains, demands at EU level will place pressure on the Irish Government to promote development within the sector.

“There is an urgent need for long-term sustainable markets for energy crops.

Bioenergy can and should play a major role in meeting national energy goals for 2020, but also in looking towards further decarbonisation of the economy post-2020,” he explains. “Irish agriculture is capable of playing a major role in the generation of electricity, providing fuel for heating and transport from renewables and achieving Government 2020 targets. Ireland has, however, been slow to embrace energy crops as a potential solid biofuel resource.”

Wood remains the main source of bioenergy, which can be used directly or converted to pellet form. However there are plenty of alternatives from crops – miscanthus, hemp, willow, bamboo, switchgrass and many others. In Ireland, farmers grow energy crops consisting mainly of short rotation coppice (SCR) willow and miscanthus, with around 1,000ha and 2,000ha grown in the country respectively. That figure is down by 1,000ha in recent years, mainly in relation to miscanthus, which Caslin attributes to a lack of market availability and crop failure in cases where ‘poor advice’ was provided. Though the income potential is there (with the right supports in place), while using bioenergy on the farm could also go far in reducing bills, farmers are unlikely to switch to energy crops in greater numbers unless it’s economically attractive, and Caslin says that the Government must do more to stimulate the sector and encourage the development and use of infrastructure like machinery, drying facilities and trade centres.

“What we really need here in Ireland from an agricultural perspective to make all of this happen is to put the structures in place that will encourage the deployment and development of the biomass sector. If you look at most other sectors in agriculture there are

“IN IRELAND, FARMERS GROW ENERGY CROPS CONSISTING MAINLY OF SHORT ROTATION COPPICE (SCR) WILLOW AND MISCANTHUS, WITH AROUND 1,000HA AND 2,000HA GROWN IN THE COUNTRY RESPECTIVELY.”

structures in place. You can take your milk and you get a price per litre. You take your beef to the factory and you get a price per kilo. Those structures are lacking in the bioenergy sector,” he says.

The sector is set to receive a huge boost next year with the planned announcement of the renewable heat incentive (RHI), which would provide an incentive for each unit of renewable heat which is produced and used, and should go live in 2017.

The incentive will be based on a tariff calculated to compensate for ‘additional capital costs’ and ‘perceived barriers’ in comparison to fossil fuels. Measures like this are key – according to a report by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), bioenergy could supply 10 per cent of electricity or 30 per cent of our heating requirements, should obstacles such as low prices or supply barriers be addressed.

But alongside investment in infrastructure and government policies which create demand and encourage development, what the sector really needs is confidence to take a step forward. “I think confidence is the key word here from a farmer’s perspective. A lot of farmers got bitten by energy crops already, it sent out a bad vibe,” says Caslin. “It’s important that when the structures or policies are being put in place, that it’s done in a harmonised approach, that it’s not just ticking the box of one government department, but all government departments should be involved in it.”

One thing Caslin makes clear is that the opportunities are vast and diverse, and not just for farmers – for businesses who spot an opportunity, for the construction sector in building plants and facilities, and the increased levels of employment that go hand in hand. Take for example Biomass Heating Solutions, helmed by Limerick man Jack O’Connor who developed a gasification boiler to burn chicken manure and fought successfully at EU level to have it included as a legitimate biomass feedstock. Even the country as a whole can benefit, increasing Ireland’s GDP, offering security of energy supply, price stability and decreased costs. “There’s lots of opportunities to open this up for a number of sectors, pigs and poultry, maybe the likes of solar and heat pumps in dairying,” says Caslin. “Farmers will embrace this once they can make a margin out of this. The question is getting the industry developed and the markets developed.

This is not a pipe dream – it is reality and something which I feel will happen in the next five to ten years. Bioenergy is good for employment, good for the economy and good for rural Ireland.”

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Smooth Transition With cows around the country transitioning to winter feeding, Connolly’s RED MILLS nutritionist Michael Butler offers some sound advice around this challenging process. fatty liver, and milk fever. Cows above a BCS of 3.5 should be separated and fed accordingly to reduce the gain.

It is the time of year when cows are transitioning to a winter feeding system. Ensuring that this is a healthy transition means adhering to key dietary requirements so it can support autumn calving cows to go on to produce a healthy calf. It should also facilitate a smooth changeover from non-lactating to lactating.

KEY DIETARY REQUIREMENTS Where excess BCS is an issue, my recommendation is to restrict forage and to feed a precalver mineral via molassed blocks or loose minerals. As a rule of thumb, cows should be offered some silage, straw and hay to reduce the influx of body condition. Post-calving, the diet of the cow should be significantly changed to reduce the mobilisation of body condition. The energy content must be increased and cows should be supplemented with feed that has a

ISSUES DURING TRANSITION PERIOD Body condition score (BCS) will be the most important factor when transitioning cows to winter feed, as it can have a big influence on the metabolic profile of the cow. Excess body condition can manifest problems such as dystocia, Ear to the Ground 188x133 ad AW.pdf

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concentrate of 18 per cent protein at approximately 2-4 kg per day; subject to the genetic merit of the cow. It is pivotal to offer high quality silage during the transition to winter feed. If silage is below 72 per cent DMD a greater requirement of supplementary feeds will be needed.

SEEK PROFESSIONAL ADVICE The key objective is to achieve a high milk output while ensuring the health and metabolic profile of the herd is not compromised. It is always advisable to consult with a qualified nutritionist when it comes to adjusting or changing the diet of any stock, so as not to compromise overall health and performance.

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ORGANIC FARMING IS GROWING IN IRELAND – BUT WE STILL LAG BEHIND OUR EUROPEAN NEIGHBOURS. CONSIDERING OUR GREAT REPUTATION FOR QUALITY FOOD INGREDIENTS, WHY ARE WE SO RELUCTANT TO GO AU NATURALE? EAR TO THE GROUND INVESTIGATES.

Ireland is so synonymous with food production and farming that it can come as some surprise that our levels of organic farming are far lower than that of our European counterparts. It’s even more surprising when we learn that demand for local, organic food is growing rapidly, and the demand for Irish organic food is growing in other countries, so there is plenty of scope for exports. Why, then, in this era of price squeezes and low profits, are we reluctant to go organic?

Grace Maher, development officer with the Irish Organic Farmers and Growers Association (IOFGA), explains how far we are behind with organic farming in Ireland. “Just under 2 per cent of farmers in Ireland are certified organic.

The European average is about 6 per cent, with some countries as high as 14, 15 even 20 per cent,” she explains.

“We’re low for a few reasons. Firstly, in terms of support of the organic sector; traditionally the sector hasn’t been very well supported from a policy point of view. Also, farmers themselves are slow to come around to organic – there tends to be a bit of a fear among farmers about what’s involved. It’s a bit ironic, because farming in Ireland is classed as extensive rather than intensive, so many farmers use organic methods and use very little in the way of pesticides, but don’t then convert.”

Things are changing, however, thanks to the opening of an organic farming scheme last year for two intakes, in April and December. According to the IOFGA, over 500 farmers came into organic farming on the back of last

year’s scheme. “When farmers decide to make the transition, it tends to be a very informed decision, they’ve been thinking about it over a number of years, and we know there are lots who are interested in changing now, but there’s no support scheme open for them at the moment,” Maher adds.

OPPORTUNITY So how big is the organic market? Is it really as big an opportunity as often touted? “It’s a sector that is growing in terms of markets, and has been growing for decades at a European level,” Maher says. “The organic market in Europe alone is worth €24 billion; it’s a very developed market in Europe. People want organic food and they want it at a local level, and that demand is growing. So farmers are producing something that people want to eat and often are willing to pay a premium for it, generally 10 to 20 per cent. Which means that farmers will get a good price for what they are producing.”

A big advantage for farmers is the opportunity to have control over their pricing and therefore their profits, as Maher explains. “A lot of our farmers sell direct, so they’re being paid a good price for their products. They have more control over their pricing and their products too. When you think of the stories in the media where in dairy and tillage they’re being paid less for their products than it costs them to produce it, from a profit point of view, I think farmers should seriously look at organic and what prices

they can get for their products.”

In fact, Jimmy Mulhall, who operates the 250-acre Coolanowle Organic Farm (www.coolanowle.com) with his family, which is mainly a dairy enterprise, says that selling direct is really the main route for organic farmers. “We’re involved in direct selling, and that’s a very important part for us,” he says. “I wouldn’t see that much of a difference between organic and conventional farming, in terms of business, unless you have some sort of direct route through to customers.

We sell at markets and through our website, and the growth is there.”

Kenneth Keavey from Green Earth Organics (www.greenearthorganics. ie), who recently won an award for Best Direct Sales at the National Organic Food Awards, says that they have changed their business model in recent years to concentrate mainly on direct selling. “We have one key area now: home delivery. A lot of people order online from our website, seeing what’s available and ordering, or sign up to receive a regular box delivery,” Keavey explains.” Eighty-five per cent of our business is done that way.

Then we also supply some SuperValu stores in Mayo and Galway.”

Both Jimmy Mulhall and Kenneth Keavey converted to organic prerecession, and both cite health and welfare, as well as business, reasons for going organic. “We went into conversion in 2001,” Mulhall explains. “I was a bit disillusioned by conventional farming as prices were being squeezed and I couldn’t see much of a future

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in it. I also wasn’t happy by the way conventional farming was becoming more intensive too, using more fertiliser, more spraying and so on. Health-wise I wasn’t happy, both in the food we were producing and for our own health.”

Keavey was working in the pharmaceutical sector in the UK when he decided to try organic farming on his father’s land. “I wanted to get out of the world of chemicals and do something sustainable, it was always something I believed in,” he says. “When my father was asking what we should do with the farm, it made sense for me to come back and do something with the land. I had no experience but decided to give it a go.”

For every farmer, the conversion

process takes two years, but it’s not as daunting as some might think, according to both farmers. “In a way, going organic with animals is a bit easier as there’s less pressure on the animals,” says Mulhall.

“Conventional farming is quite intense on the animals as they are being pushed to produce more and more, and that’s when you can run into trouble.”

Grace Maher from the IOFGA explains further. “During the conversion period, they’re farming organically but they can’t sell what they are producing as organic until they have their full badge.

An inspector pays an annual visit to make sure there’s compliance, and then there are spot checks throughout the year,” she says. “For a farmer, it’s a

huge shift in mindset as to how they’re producing their food – because if you’re producing organically, you can’t use synthetic chemicals, fertilisers, pesticides, fungicides. From an animal point of view, there are strict guidelines for animal welfare; treatment with antibiotics is allowed but it’s very restricted. For instance, if you have to treat a cow with antibiotics for mastitis, you can give one round of antibiotics in 12 months, but any more than that and the animal has to be withdrawn from the organic process. Obviously animal welfare is a cornerstone of organic, so we don’t let any animal suffer, but it’s very regulated.

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Kenneth Keavey from Green Earth Organics with his award for Best Direct Selling

Ham fillets from Jimmy Mulhall’s farm

Bill George, Bernadine Mulhall, Eddie Mulhall, and Jimmy Mulhall

initially might be a bit concerned about the process, but once they’re in it, they really enjoy organic farming.

It’s a step back to more natural ways of farming and animal welfare.”

There are many other advantages to going organic too – on a countrywide level, as well as for a farmer, as Kenneth Keavey explains. “Studies have shown that apart from the obvious advantages like avoiding things like pesticides in our foods, there are other advantages to going organic, such as the jobs it creates, especially locally in rural areas,” he says. “For instance, we have a farm of 20-odd acres and

“FOR EVERY FARMER THE CONVERSION PROCESS TAKES TWO YEARS, BUT IT’S NOT AS DAUNTING AS SOME MIGHT THINK.”

we employ 23 people. Then there’s the issue of climate change – organic is usually locally produced, so there’s little travel time in getting the produce to the market and then to your house.”

The recession did affect demand for organic produce – Jimmy Mulhall says that the business experienced zero growth for several years before beginning to grow again slowly, while Keavey says they were on the brink of going out of business at one stage – but now there is definitely business to be had. “On the veg front, traditionally they say there’s a 20 per cent premium on the profit levels, so there is more scope for making a living from organic,” says Keavey. “It’s a growing market and it needs to be fed by more Irish production, so the opportunity is there.”

The official figures agree with the anecdotal evidence. “The Irish organic market is worth €146 million, up 23 per cent on last year – that only takes into account sales through multiples.

This figure doesn’t take into account exports (we export beef and salmon) and direct sales like online and farmers’ markets. When you take into account that the grocery sector has only

grown 3 per cent in that same time span, organic really is the market that is growing – and why farmers should really look at organic as a good way to go,” explains Grace Maher. “We see it as a lost marketing opportunity. We had people over from Denmark a few weeks back and they couldn’t get over the quality of the farming here. The opportunity is there for farmers, we are sitting on the edge of Europe, which is crying out for more organic food products. We can’t keep up with demand right now, and we need to capitalise on the opportunity that is there.”

Maher also notes the need for Government backing to develop and grow the industry. “Obviously, too, we need the Government to come onboard and support us too. There is an organic farming plan on a policy level that has set a target of 5 per cent by 2020,” she says. “We think that’s doable and it will bring us more in line with the rest of Europe, but over the longer term we’d like to see 20-25 per cent of farmers being certified organic.”

For more on organic farming in Ireland, visit iofga.org or organictrust.ie.

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SERVING IRELAND’S ORGANIC COMMUNITY SINCE 1992

Obtain Organic certification from Organic Trust a member-focused organisation – and enjoy the following benefits: • Cost-effective, efficient and confidential service • Monthly E-Newsletter • Receipt of Clover magazine – Organic Trust renowned publication • State-of-the-art website • Free participation at technical events for members • Free application pack Organic Trust licensed operators scoop the lion’s share of awards at the 2016 National Organic Awards.

The Organic Trust offers sincere congratulations to all winners and wishes everyone the greatest success with their original and innovative products and produce.

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

The Best of Organic Ireland The National Organic Awards celebrate Ireland’s organic sector.

Ireland’s National Organic Awards are held every two years and are organised

by Bord Bia working closely with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), the main funder of the eagerly awaited event. The awards provide an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the work of established organic growers and manufacturers, as well as shining a spotlight on newcomers to the Irish organic sector.

A record 278 entries were received from July to early September, reflecting a surge in interest in the sector. The Irish organic market, similar to other organic markets across Europe, is showing strong growth in recent years.

A panel of seven judges was selected

from Ireland and the UK; these included buyers, industry experts, chefs and media. The judges decided on the 3-4 shortlisted products in each of the categories, with the winners in each category announced at an awards lunch in Bord Bia on October 13th.

The awards were presented to each of the seven winners by Minister of State Andrew Doyle, TD, together with Bord Bia CEO Aidan Cotter. Commenting on this year’s awards, Aidan Cotter said: “We are delighted to see that the quality and diversity of the products continues to go from strength to strength each year. The judges had a difficult task in shortlisting the finalists, showing the dedication of Irish organic food

producers with the awards offering a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the best the industry has to offer.”

Minister Doyle was similarly impressed. “The positive energy around the awards this year is palpable,” he said. “There is clearly real momentum around the sector of late, with consumers actively seeking out locally-grown produce and healthy prepared organic foods to incorporate into their diets.”

Judges, industry players and buyers alike all agreed that there has never been a better time for the organic sector in Ireland. Each of the seven winners in Ireland’s National Organic Awards 2016 is pictured at the awards ceremony below.

Export Award: Flahavan’s Irish Organic Porridge Oats from E. Flahavan & Sons, Co Waterford. Direct Selling Award: 100% Irish Veg Box by Green Earth Organics, Co Galway. Best New Product: Smoked Organic Picanha Beef from Ummera Smoked Products Ltd., Co Cork. Innovation Award: My Organics Living Salad – Salad Bowl Mix from Mulberry Meadow Organic Farm, Co Monaghan. Best Prepared Product: Culture Blend Coffee from Blakes Always Organic, Co Leitrim. Best Fresh Product: Organic Salad Bag from The Organic Centre in Rossinver, Co Leitrim. Chefs’ Choice Award: Highbank Apple Syrup by Highbank Orchards, Co Kilkenny.

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WHITE’S AGRI, Lusk, Co Dublin Established in 1992, White’s Agri has since grown to become one of the largest independent agri merchants in the northeast region. Over the past number of years the business has diversified immensely, and now includes a range of Osmo organic fertilisers among its broad product offering.

flying the flag

FOR ORGANIC IN IRELAND

WE PROFILE SOME OF THE IRISH BUSINESSES AND ORGANISATIONS OFFERING AN ORGANIC ALTERNATIVE.

SLIEVE AUGHTY CENTRE, Loughrea, Co Galway A familyowned eco-friendly equestrian and activity leisure centre, Slieve Aughty Centre (pictured below) allows visitors to immerse themselves in nature and enjoy quality time with their loved ones.

Central to the business is its organic certified garden and Three Towers Eco House & Organic Kitchen, one of only two restaurants certified organic in Ireland.

SÁILE IRISH SEAWEED FOOD, Ardrahan, Co Galway A family-run business in the West of Ireland, Sáile began life as a kitchen experiment mixing traditional soda bread with dillisk seaweed. That got owners Richard and Rachel thinking – perhaps they could add seaweed to other food as well. Since then the company has gone from strength to strength, using hand harvested seaweed from along the Wild Atlantic Way, researching the benefits of each of their ingredients to ensure they use the most nutritional option while retaining taste. Each of their ingredients is organic, and Sáile is certified with the Irish Organic Farmers and Growers Association (IOFGA), as well as the Vegetarian Society. “Healthy eating can often be difficult, especially when people are working and life is busy. It can be timeconsuming to cook everything from scratch, or even to have all of the ingredients in stock when you want to bake a nutritious snack,” say Richard and Rachel. “With Sáile, we set about developing foods that would incorporate the nutritional benefits of seaweed, and which would taste great to adults and children alike.”

THE ORGANIC COLLEGE, Dromcollogher, Co Limerick A college of about 60 students in the Co Limerick town of Dromcollogher, The Organic College (An t-Ionad Glas) is dedicated to providing quality courses in organic growing and sustainability, certified through Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI). Students learn about organic gardening and horticulture in the classroom, and outdoors in the Enterprise Acre. The gardens are fully certified organic and are maintained by students studying organic horticulture.

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study Abroad AN INNOVATIVE PROGRAMME OFFERED BY OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY ALLOWS YOUNG FARMERS FROM IRELAND AND ELSEWHERE TO GAIN EXPERIENCE ON THE MASSIVE CROP FARMS ACROSS THE US, WRITES PENNY GRAY.

In an industry as hands-on as farming, nothing beats practical experience, and the more diverse the experience, the better. You cannot get more diverse than the vast farms in the US that run into the tens of thousands of acres, which require the very latest and most expensive equipment to successfully farm such a massive area. Getting experience abroad has become a popular route for young student farmers, whether it’s heading Down Under to farm massive sheep enterprises or even experience the large-scale harvesting in the US. The Ohio State University has been successfully running the innovative Ohio International Intern Programme since 1979. Programme coordinator John Beardmore, who is originally from the UK, completed the programme himself 22 years ago, and has been working at the university for the last 18 years.

“Each year we bring about 400 people to the USA from around the world

for agricultural-based internships – and it’s all sorts of agriculture,” John explains. “We divide the programme into three parts – the traditional farms like harvesting, pig farms, dairy farms etc., then there’s horticulture and landscaping, and finally there’s turf grass. The Irish students generally go for tillage and machinery, so might go to large crop farms or the harvesting crews.”

For the interns, the attraction is simple. “For the students it’s a chance to get experience with the latest and greatest machinery,” John explains.

“It’s also a chance to farm on a much bigger scale than in Ireland.

Different climate, different crops, different techniques – it’s a chance to learn something new. The farms are big – the largest one we have on the programme right now is 40,000 acres. That’s not in one block either – from the workshop to the

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“THE INTERNSHIP ALSO OFFERS YOUNG IRISH FARMERS A REAL ADVENTURE ON THE LAND, ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO CHOOSE TO TRAVEL WITH THE HARVESTING CREWS.” CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: A fleet of harvesters work in tandem; Downtime off the farm is important; The interns are given the chance to work with many different types of machinery. Photos courtesy Ohio State University.

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TOP: Another successful job. BELOW: One of the many interns from countries around the world who take part in the intern programme. Photos courtesy Ohio State University.

furthest field it’s six hours on a tractor.”

With this in mind it’s clear, then, that there are huge advantages for the host farmers in terms of labour – but the typical interns also bring something to the job that is much appreciated by the US farmers: passion for the land and for the farming sector. “The US is lacking in people who are willing to get their hands dirty, shall we say, and in some places labour, especially seasonal, can be hard to find. We also had one farmer say that for a lot of US workers, it’s just a job, but some of these interns have a real passion for the industry and they want to learn and progress, and as a result, they don’t moan if they’re not home by 8pm or missing the girlfriend etc.”

From hearing some of the students’ experiences, the internship also offers young Irish farmers a real adventure on the land, especially those who choose to travel with the harvesting crews. These crews travel around the States following the harvest and work on huge, powerful

machines to bring in massive harvests in mere days. John Hoey, who grew up on his family farm in Castlebellingham, decided to try working on the American harvest this year through the Ohio State programme, and is currently working up to 16 hours a day with Frederick’s Harvesting on some of the biggest farms in America. He earned his truck license when he arrived in Kansas to start work, before working through Oklahoma, Kansas, South Dakota and North Dakota. The chance, he says, to work on such a massive and different scale to his 350-acre family farm in Louth has given him plenty of ideas and education about farm management that he can use when he returns home to Ireland later this year.

“We probably have about 40 people from Ireland each year,” John Beardmore explains. “The maximum amount of time they can stay is a year, and in the harvesting crops and machinery side, it’s generally eight months, from midMarch through to the end of November,

as it fits in with the seasons.”

Gavin Hastings, who completed the programme last year, says that the system is very well established and userfriendly. “I found the whole experience very easy and helpful,” he says. “To do the programme, obviously you’re away from home for a long while and they were helpful with any issues we might have. It really set me up for life, learning how to fend for myself while living away from home. In terms of work experience too, I learned a lot and I feel I’m a lot wiser now. It also set me up well for my future career.”

Like every intern programme, there are rules and regulations as to who can apply. “We say you should be about 18 to 28; we can take older, but we’re not an immigration programme,” John explains. “They should be studying or [have] completed a relevant qualification. If they’ve never been to college or don’t have an agricultural qualification, they should have at least five years’ relevant experience.

“When the recession hit and jobs in industries like construction dried up in Ireland, my phone lit up, but I couldn’t help a lot of the people who rang. They may have grown up on a small farm, but they haven’t worked in agriculture or studied it, so didn’t have the relevant experience for the visa.”

John is quick to clarify that it’s not a means to a job, but rather a way of gaining experience you can’t get in Ireland or on college courses. It can lead to job opportunities that might not have been open to them or considered before completing the programme, however. “Officially it’s straight back to Ireland – they are viewed as unofficial ambassadors for the US and the idea is that they come over, learn some skills and then return to Ireland more qualified and more able to pick up jobs in Ireland,” he says. “Sometimes it might take them in a different direction – for instance, I’ve seen guys go back and work for companies like John Deere because they have experience in machinery and have proved that they are willing to go abroad and make the effort to better themselves and learn something new. Some guys do come back; occasionally a host farmer might like an intern and is willing to do the paperwork for a visa for them. In the main, though, they tend to return home.”

For more information on the Ohio international intern programme, visit www.ohioprogram.org.

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IOFGA taking care of all of your certification needs IOFGA have a proven track record in delivering on policy and we also: • promote organic food and farming • offer client support particularly during the conversion period • provide technical information and regular updates to members • work with our European colleagues on organic regulations

IRISH ORGANIC FARMERS & GROWERS ASSOCIATION Tel: (+353) 090 6433680 • Fax: (+353) 090 6449005 Email: info@iofga.org www.iofga.org 240710_2L_IOFGA_JR_ETTG.indd 1

The Organic College

The Organic College

Dromcollogher Co. Limerick Providing Courses in Organic Growing for 25 years

Dromcollogher Co. Limerick Providing Courses in Organic Growing for 25 years

Call or email us for information on our QQI Level 5 & 6 Courses in Organic Horticulture Talk to Maria 063 83604 oifig@organiccollege.com www.organiccollege.com

Call or email us for information on our QQI Level 5 & 6 Courses in Organic Horticulture Talk to Maria 063 83604 oifig@organiccollege.com www.organiccollege.com

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Trust Organic When it comes to organic food, it’s all about trust – Organic Trust!

It is with great pride that we congratulate the Organic Trust members who managed to win six of the seven organic awards presented by Minister Andrew Doyle and Bord Bia at the 2016 National Organic Awards ceremony.

The Organic Trust winners were: • The Organic Centre – Best Fresh Product, Organic Salad Bag • Highbank Organic Farm – Chef’s Choice, Organic Orchard Syrup • Ummera Smoked Products – Best New Product, Smoked Organic Picanha Beef • Flahavan & Sons – Export Award, Flahavan’s Irish Organic Porridge Oats • Blakes Always Organic – Best Prepared Product, Culture Blend Coffee • Mulberry Meadow Farm – Innovation award, My Organics Living Salad – Salad Bowl Mix Warmest congratulations to all!

MAINTAINING STANDARDS The Organic Trust was founded in 1992 by a group of dedicated organic producers, including some of the pioneers of the organic movement in Ireland.

Since that time the organisation has developed and matured to become the recognised professional entity it is today.

Helen Scully, CEO of the Organic Trust, has been at the heart of the growth of the organisation from its very early days. Helen is now the longest serving formulator of organic standards in Ireland and further afield – she is a recognised and respected expert in all things organic.

The Organic Trust prides itself on the quality of services it offers to its members.

Apart from the organic inspection and certification programme, the organisation has been a strong advocate for Ireland’s organic sector generally. Its popular website – www.organictrust.ie – has many helpful sections including an online searchable standards manual and amendments; member profiles; information about organic livestock sales; grant schemes available to the sector; feed and seed rules and a classified advertisements section to assist members in buying and selling produce and livestock, sourcing feed and so forth. On

L-R: Aidan Cotter, Chief Executive Bord Bia; Andrew Doyle, Minister of State for Food, Forestry & Horticulture; Helen Scully, CEO, Organic Trust and Colin Keogh, QA Manager & Senior Processing Inspector Organic Trust, pictured at the 2016 National Organic Awards ceremony.

a monthly basis each member receives the Organic Trust E-news, a state-of-theart electronic newsletter. Through this, and other regular means, the Organic Trust ensures that members are kept up to date with national and international organic news and policy, together with information for the implications of these on their own enterprises. Each member also receives the iconic Organic Trust magazine, Clover, free of charge.

The certification services offered by the Organic Trust cover the complete scope of organic enterprises including farming, horticulture, aquaculture, certified products, processing, retailing, importing, storing, distribution and trading. With the most experienced team of inspectors in the sector – each with specific expertise in their field of work – new applicants to organics can be assured that they are receiving the services of the best in the business. Current organic farmers and growers can avail of the services of our dual-qualified organic inspectors when they wish to introduce value-added products to their list of enterprises.

2017 heralds the 25th anniversary of the Organic Trust and is a time to reflect on the organisation’s achievements over these years. Always a pioneer in certification, the Organic Trust currently certifies circa 1,000 organic operators covering all available scopes. The

“THE ORGANIC TRUST PRIDES ITSELF ON THE QUALITY OF SERVICES IT OFFERS TO ITS MEMBERS. APART FROM THE ORGANIC INSPECTION AND CERTIFICATION PROGRAM, THE ORGANISATION HAS BEEN A STRONG ADVOCATE FOR IRELAND’S ORGANIC SECTOR GENERALLY.” Organic Trust also certified Ireland’s first organic restaurant – the Strawberry Tree in the BrookLodge Hotel in 2001; in 2008 we certified Ireland’s first organic supermarket which has now grown to a chain of three excellent stores, from the original branch in Blackrock, Co Dublin to two new branches in Rathgar and Malahide. In 2016, we were delighted to announce the certification of Ireland’s very first organic whiskey being distilled

by Waterford Distillery. Our members’ innovations span the entire range of the organic shopping experience in Ireland, from kombucha to kefir, chocolate to carrageen and whiskey to beef.

Always striving to be the best, in 2016 the pioneering Organic Trust commissioned our very own private standards for organic snail farming!

Whatever next? Watch this space (www. organictrust.ie) for new developments and many informative and exciting events in our anniversary year.

FOR QUERIES ABOUT ORGANIC CERTIFICATION OR ANY RELATED MATTERS PLEASE PHONE 01 853 0271, EMAIL INFO@ORGANICTRUST.IE OR VISIT WWW.ORGANICTRUST.IE

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The Three Towers Eco House and Organic Kitchen at Slieve Aughty Centre is a hidden gem and home of the only certified 100% organic restaurant in the west of Ireland. Dine on delicious food, sit on the decking with tapas and wine, or have a high tea party. The spacious and stunning dining room and bar, with doors opening out to the gardens and decking, is ideal for fa mily celebrations, parties and weddings. The strong eco-ethos of the place means you are encouraged to appreciate the beauty of what surrounds you. Situated just 45 minutes away from Galway City, walking trails are set out in the surrounding forest and a visit to the stables and craft room is not to be missed. For a great evening out, try an organic pizza with your choice of toppings, fired in the outdoor clay oven, every Friday at 7pm from April to October. Make a weekend of it and stay in one of our individually designed eco bedrooms or lodges. With retreats and workshops organised throughout the year, such as yoga, horsemanship and various crafts, there really is something for everyone.

SLIEVE AUGHTY CENTRE, KYLEBRACK WEST, LOUGHREA, CO. GALWAY. TEL: 090 9745 246. WEB: WWW.SLIEVEAUGHTYCENTRE.COM EMAIL: INFO@SLIEVEAUGHTYCENTRE.COM

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

The Gift of Water in Malawi Thanks to the support of people all over Ireland, Trócaire is currently providing water pumps and irrigation to some of the poorest drought affected areas of the world.

Sitting under a tree to shelter from the relentless sun, Mary speaks about her worries. She speaks slowly and softly, choosing her words carefully.

It’s about the rain, she explains. They don’t get much of it anymore in her village in southern Malawi, and when it doesn’t rain they can’t grow crops. The rain used to arrive each November and last until February, but over the last few years it hasn’t come until December, sometimes even January, and when it does come it lasts only a few weeks.

The fact that we are sheltering under a tree tells its own story: this is supposed to be the rainy season in Malawi but there are bright blue skies and it is almost 40 degrees Celsius. This is the practical reality of climate change – farming people in one of Africa’s poorest countries

going hungry while they wait for the sky to give them water. “Climate change has really affected us,” says Mary. “I often wonder what the future will be like for my children. I have so many pressures in my life. Climate change has brought so many problems on us.”

The lack of water is the single biggest driver of hunger throughout the developing world. As rain patterns change, people like Mary who are reliant on the rain to grow food are facing increasingly long periods of hunger. More than six million people in Malawi are currently experiencing food shortages due to drought. In 2016, Trócaire has been responding with emergency food and seeds for families and farms affected by the worst drought in over 30 years.

Trócaire has installed a water pump into Mary’s village. The pump means

that the people there have access to clean drinking water all year round, instead of being forced to walk several miles to get dirty water from the local river. The pump is a lifeline for them.

Even during the current drought, they have managed to carry water from the pump to nearby fields, allowing some crops to grow. But the fields far away from the pump stay dry and lifeless.

“The water pump has really changed our lives,” says Mary. “Before it was installed we had to get all our water from the local river and there were lots of diseases but now we have clean water in the village. It has made a really big difference to us.”

You can support this work by buying the gift of water or by donating. This simple gift will allow Trócaire to deliver clean, reliable water to people like Mary who are living through drought.

TO BUY A TRÓCAIRE GIFT OR TO DONATE TO TRÓCAIRE, VISIT TROCAIRE.ORG OR CALLSAVE 1850 408 408.

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Jimmy McCormack, Trócaire supporter.

Hu O’Reilly, Photographer.

www.trocaire.org Callsave 1850 408 408 Charity Reg. No. 20009601; Revenue Number CHY 5883

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BUSINESS

Passion &Pride ATTENTION TO MINUTE DETAIL FROM BREEDER TO CONSUMER IS THE SECRET BEHIND HANNAN MEATS’ HUGE SUCCESS WITH ITS MULTIAWARD-WINNING DRY-AGED BEEF PRODUCED IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE GLENARM SHORTHORN SCHEME IN NORTHERN IRELAND, WRITES PENNY GRAY. We Irish punch well above our weight when it comes to some of our natural food ingredients, especially our dairy and meat. A perfect case in point is Hannan Meats in Moira, Co Down, which has won numerous top awards for its products, including its delicious dry-aged beef products, now seriously in demand across the world. The company supplies 350 high-end restaurants and food businesses across the globe, including Mark Hix’s restaurants in the UK and Fortnum & Mason in London.

The company produces a full range of meat products, but about 75 per cent of its business is now in beef, thanks largely to a highly successful partnership with a group of Glenarm Shorthorn beef farmers in Northern Ireland, as owner Peter Hannan explains. “The Glenarm Shorthorn business has concentrated our focus on beef,” he says. “That’s growing hugely – we went from one farm to 11 farms and now I

think we have about 122 farms in the scheme – and it’s still growing rapidly.”

Peter was approached by Adrian Morrow from the Glenarm Estate about ten years ago to set up some sort of scheme, and it coincided with his development of a salt-ageing process (the beef is aged in a Himalayan salt chamber). “We thought that this might be a lovely raw product to put through the new salt chambers,” he explains. “Sometimes in life it’s about timing, and we thought that these were people with real integrity who were prepared to go in for the long term.

When we slaughtered the first of the herd, we knew we had something that potentially would be very special.”

And special it is. Hannan Meats is a multi-award-winning company, and most recently has been winning award after award for its beef products. “The World Steak Challenge took place in London recently and was won by an Australian

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PHOTO COURTESY HENRIQUE PERON

PHOTO COURTESY HENRIQUE PERON

BUSINESS

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BUSINESS

PHOTO: HENRIQUE PERON

The Himalayan salt chamber.

Peter Hannan

Wagyu steak, but out of the whole lot, nine won gold medals, and we received two of those,” he says. “One was for our Glenarm Shorthorn and the other was for the Angus scheme that we run.”

That’s not all. After winning the Supreme Champion award in the Great Taste Awards in 2012 for its guanciale, this year the company won it again for its Glenarm Shorthorn 4 Rib Roast.

This is after Peter said the prize could never be won by a piece of raw meat.

“The reason I said it couldn’t be done [was] because from start to finish, you have to submit the rack of six different animals. To have the sort of consistency,

“PETER HANNAN MAINTAINS THAT THE FOCUS WILL ALWAYS BE ON THE FARMER, A VITAL COG IN THE OVERALL PROCESS.”

I thought [the prize] was just out of reach. But of course we were thoroughly delighted,” he tells me. “It’s a monument to all the people involved – we’re only one part of the process. Our partners are hugely important, our farmers are hugely important, and I always say that if you surround yourself with good people, you will look great. And we’re surrounded by fantastic people with the same mindsets.”

So what makes the beef so great?

“Great raw materials, we can’t do it without our farmers,” Hannan says. “We have always subscribed to a different way of doing things than to the massproduced market. We like beef to be properly finished, to have good marble running through it, come from a native breed and then we handle it in a very specific way through the slaughtering process before ageing it in a room lined with Himalayan salt. We try to give a great raw material the best chance, and that’s about all those little details that others mightn’t care too much about but are very important to us. I always think that the difference between good and great in all walks of life is the attention to detail – and it’s true of us too.”

Hannan claims to never let meat leave

his premises unless it’s ready – even if a customer is yelling for it. “We do [have to keep things moving] but our partners are very select partners. They would want to wait for a piece of meat that’s great next week rather than having something that isn’t ready this week. But there’s always something there. So if they’re looking for sirloin, we might say that the sirloin isn’t ready until next week but the ribs are first class this week,” he says. “Fortnum & Mason are the same. We age the beef to about 35 days here and then they take the beef to their facility and they’re in charge then. It’s about finding partners who share your passion for doing things well, and to make sure they’re not interested in taking a shortcut. We also have a system in place where you can’t take a piece of beef out of the salt chamber before 30 days as the barcode won’t be recognised, so it can’t go into product.

That takes human error out of it.”

It seems that this policy has not harmed business at all, with Fortnum & Mason reporting that their meat sales have risen over 3,000 per cent since introducing Hannan Meats products over three years ago. In fact, business is so good that demand is outstripping supply, and so the scheme is growing. “We have aspirations to take the Glenarm Shorthorn scheme Ireland-wide, but it’s a process that has to be done in a managed fashion. But we hope that this is the future for us, in terms of growth,” Hannan says.

But no matter how big Hannan Meats and the Glenarm Shorthorn scheme grow, Peter Hannan maintains that the focus will always be on the farmer, a vital cog in the overall process. “Last November, I suggested to Adrian that we get all the farmers together before Christmas, feed them a steak and some wine and let them meet each other,” he says. “A couple of days later, I was over in London with Mark Hix and I mentioned the plan to him, and he wanted to know the date so he could come over and cook for them. Mark and a squad of his chefs came over and cooked, while Clodagh McKenna did desserts, and we had 89 farmers here in the tannery in Moira. We rather naively thought they knew what we did, but at the event we showed them a five-minute video of what we do, plus a thank you message from Fortnum & Mason, and most of the farmers didn’t realise where their beef went. You could see some of them grow a foot with pride.

It was a really lovely occasion, but those are the types of relationships that we want to have, as this is a team of really passionate people, from start to finish.”

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COMMERCIAL NEWS

commercial NEWS Follow the Eco-Trail A certified Ecotourism Ireland tour operator, Slieve Aughty Centre has developed several ways for everybody from the casual day tripper to the die-hard adventurer to explore this beautiful landscape. Residential eco holidays allow guests the comfort of staying in the comfort of The Three Towers each night while exploring different parts of the surrounding forest and country roads by day. For those who want to go further, the new eco-trail provides challenging walks through a variety of landscapes with stops at delightful and eco-friendly family farms, gypsy wagons, and chalets along the way.

Day trips take advantage of the four selfguided walking trails around the centre, and for the little ones, visit the fairy folk in the Enchanted Forest, a 10-minute walk from the parking area to a native woodland by a gentle stream. While walking the Irish countryside in itself is a great experience, all of the eco-trail options can be done with an Irish donkey companion, on foot, or by bicycle.

Busy year for Gleeson Steel

Based in Co Tipperary, Gleeson Steel & Engineering has had a busy 2016, supplying steel engineering solutions to the agricultural sector, supplying and erecting farm buildings across Munster and around the country. The company is also a certified commercial bodybuilder, providing livestock bodies and trailers which are manufactured by its subsidiary, Gleeson Truck Bodies. One of the firm’s most recent projects involved working on the Borrisoleigh Sports Complex in Borrisoleigh, Co Tipperary – providing 30 tonnes of structural steel, 1,300 metres of cold rolled purlins and 80m of insulated roof panel.

Green light for cattle tags

Datamars Ireland has become the third supplier of cattle tags to be given the green light from the Department of Agriculture, following in the steps of Mullinahone Co-op and Cormac Tagging. Farmers are increasingly opting out of the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF) levy on cattle tags, which stands at 38c per tag. “We haven’t faced anything like this since the IBR outbreak in Tully,” ICBF chair chairman Michael Doran said in the Irish Independent. “We’ve no confirmation of the numbers involved yet, but any fall-off in funding is a big amount.”

Ornua Expansion

Ornua, the home of Kerrygold butter and Ireland’s largest exporter of Irish dairy products, has continued its expansion measures in late 2016, with a €10 million extension of its production facility in Düsseldorf, as well its acquisition of the CoreFX Ingredients division of MCT Dairies, Inc. and a powder ingredient production facility in Orangeville, Illinois. In the last two years, Ornua has grown its manufacturing capacity in China, Germany, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, the US and in the UK, and opened the global home for Kerrygold in Mitchelstown, Co Cork. Kerrygold sales retail at €750m, and the company’s plan is to grow this figure to €1bn.

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BUSINESS

Coming up Roses Most of the flowers available in Ireland are imported, harvested, preserved and flown in from the Netherlands and further afield. Until recently there’s been very little awareness about where our cut flowers come from – in the US and the UK there have been significant steps towards slow, sustainable flower production – but, like the move towards consuming more local foods, there’s now increasing interest in Irish-grown flowers. A number of small flower businesses are burgeoning around the country, providing natural, seasonal and sustainable products.

Hanako Floral Studio HANNA HEUBACH

When German-born Hanna Heubach arrived in Ireland, growing flowers and making bouquets was the only thing she knew how to do. Her mum was a florist, her dad a grower; she grew up surrounded by flowers, so it was natural that she trained as a florist.

When she started turning up at the markets of Cork with buckets of her cottage flowers, she thinks some people were quite irritated by it. “It was quite unusual then, they thought I was selling wildflowers,” she explains. “I started very small and then people asked me to do their weddings so I started that. Times are changing and more people are going for the wildflower look now – though they shouldn’t be called wildflowers because they are a lot of maintenance!” Growing her own

DASHA CAFFREY PHOTOGRAPHY

SOME OF IRELAND’S GREENEST FINGERS ARE BUILDING BUSINESSES GROWING FLOWERS SUSTAINABLY, IN SPITE OF LESS THAN FAVOURABLE WEATHER CONDITIONS, WRITES VALERIE JORDAN.

gives her the advantage over other florists of having varieties that can be difficult to get because they don’t ship well, like dahlias or sweet peas. Her niche is having blooms that other florists can’t get. “I grow anything and everything which is possible to grow.

I’m still experimenting so every year I grow a few new things. I have my own foliage and I go out foraging, too,” she says. “The weather is the biggest challenge. No matter what you grow, every grower gives out about the weather, but because we are organic we struggle a lot with the high humidity because of all the fungi.” While the weather wasn’t among Hanna’s reasons for choosing to grow flowers in Ireland, she says there are other advantages for basing her business, Hanako

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BUSINESS Hanna Heubach of Hanako Floral Studio.

Floral Studio (www.hanako.ie), here. “The market for me is quite good because there isn’t that much competition in this sector.

You get more and more little flower growers now, which is great, but there aren’t many.

It would be much more competitive in Germany.” Hanna also runs flower workshops for professionals and hobbyists, which she says are very popular. Though she would like to get big enough to employ someone to help with some of the heavier work, she says she loves seeing the flowers bloom. “Some of the work is very difficult and on a rainy day I don’t enjoy it so much,” she says. “But I love seeing things come up, things you weren’t expecting; when the flowers start I really enjoy it.”

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Bumblebee Flower Farm

Darragh at Elmgrove farm

Mags Riordan has been a professional florist for almost 20 years. She used to work with imported flowers, but decided to start growing her own near Drimoleague, Co Cork when she developed dermatitis and looked into how the flowers she was using were being farmed. “It horrified me,” she says. “The chemicals are frightening. Some of the flowers are coming from South America and things that have been banned for years in Europe are still widely used there. It’s tragic that something that is sold for its beauty is so poisoned.” Mags did a horticultural course and got a few tunnels and a couple of raised beds. She started small, doing a few weddings – now a core part of her business. She says people select her to do their flowers because they like the fact that they’re clean, locally grown and sustainable. She’s now getting into growing edible flowers, such as nasturtiums, calendula, phlox paniculata, dahlias and roses, which are becoming popular with chefs. Bumblebee

Farm (www.bumblebeeflowerfarm.ie) is completely organic and in the process of getting accredited. “I feel with the edibles I need to be able to say that I’m organic.

We’re Ireland’s only edible flower farm,” she explains. Mags says the edibles will help her business through the winter months, which is more limited and reliant on a Christmas range to keep her going. She’s also constantly trying new varieties to figure out what works best. “The weather more and more is a challenge,” she adds.

“Every year is different so something that was brilliant last year might be awful this year; you always have to plant more varieties so that you’ll have something.

It never follows through.” In terms of the market for organic Irish flowers, Mags says it is small, but growing. “We don’t really think about where our flowers are coming from, but I think people are starting to look for the natural things in Ireland now,” she tells me. “I can’t compete with the imported flowers on price. I don’t market myself as the same because I’m not.”

Mags Riordan and her husband Stephen Davies

PHOTO: SEAMUS FARRELLY

MAGS RIORDAN AND STEPHEN DAVIES

Darragh’s Daffodils DARRAGH MCCULLOUGH Ear to the Ground presenter Darragh McCullough is a well-established commercial flower farmer. He has about 70 acres of flowers on his farm in Meath, mostly daffodils but in recent years he’s been diversifying into sweet William and gladiola to develop a better employment proposition. “We were relying on people coming to work for 10 weeks from Eastern Europe and that suits some people, but others wanted more work and we’d nothing to offer them,” he tells me. “We have up to 30 staff employed in spring and we hope to be able to provide employment for most of them throughout the year. ” The flowers are a good bolt-on enterprise for his business as their busy time occurs at a different point in the year to his other crops.

Bulbs go down in September and are left down for two to three years to produce a premium flower. Then the flowers are picked and the bulbs are lifted, hoping for every one planted that two bulbs are lifted. Because he grows his flowers outdoors, Darragh says he’s completely at the mercy of the weather. “Last year I went out the day after Christmas to look at my fields. Low and behold there were flowers in bloom and I had no one to pick them,” he recalls. “When we had the really cold winters we had supermarkets screaming for daffodils but we didn’t have any to pick. But you learn to roll with it. That’s weather.” The business began focused on the Irish market but is now exporting to countries like the UK and the Netherlands. “I take a bit of pride in developing a business that is an exporting one, but it is a tough place to be,” Darragh explains. “You get exposed to things like Brexit which are totally outside your control. You’ve just got to do your best. We’ve bulbs planted two years ago that are cropping this spring and it’s too late to change that at this point.”

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PHOTO: RICHARD JOHNSTON

BUSINESS

Leitrim Flowers KEALIN AND CIARÁN BEATTIE Both Kealin and Ciarán Beattie’s businesses changed dramatically during the recession. Around the same time they had purchased a ‘doer-upper’ property in Leitrim.

They started spending a lot of time down there and Ciarán, a trained horticulturist, came up with the idea of starting a flowergrowing business. The pair left Dublin, acquired some land and established Leitrim Flowers (www. leitrimflowers.ie). Kealin admits it’s hard work. They sell ten months of the year, starting in March until the end of October. Then they

prepare for the Christmas markets, probably their busiest time of year. “We thought about going to the more lucrative Dublin and Galway markets but we moved to Leitrim for a different quality of life.

Commuting to markets in Dublin wasn’t what we wanted and the markets here are big enough for us to make an income,” says Kealin.

Kealin and Ciarán run workshops, one around establishing a flower business which sells out every year. Kealin jokes that if you can have a successful cut-flower business in Leitrim, you can have

one anywhere. “Leitrim soil is daub. It’s wet and solid and awful to work with, so starting out the conditions were very difficult,” she says. “And the weather here is worse – it’s the biggest challenge.

The last two summers have been wet and dull and the two before that were beautiful, so you just don’t know what you’re going to get. We wouldn’t survive without polytunnels and raised beds.”

Weddings are the biggest part of the business – they’ve 12 in for next year already. But Kealin says they’re always adding strings to

their bow, from various workshops to selling bulbs and dried-flower pictures. “If we were just doing markets we would be struggling, so we try different things every year, to diversify and keep ourselves motivated,” she says. “You’ll never make a fortune doing this, but we have enough. And I mean that in terms of everything. It’s a great lifestyle if you have the energy and the enthusiasm.

We love it; we’re outside all the time and it’s a gorgeous environment. I only wish we had thought of this 20 years ago.”

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The Rural Side of LifE

RURAL RESETTLEMENT IRELAND HAS BEEN DOING TROJAN WORK IN ARRANGING NEW LIVES FOR URBAN DWELLERS IN RURAL IRELAND, WRITES IAN MALENEY. “There is a cohort of people in any large urban area who would like to move to the country,” says Jim Connolly, a Limerick-born musician, artist and long-time resident of Kilbaha, Co Clare. “It’s a dream for an awful lot of people, which they don’t achieve.”

As founder and leader of Rural Resettlement Ireland (RRI), Connolly has spent the last 26 years helping people to achieve that dream. Rural Resettlement Ireland was set up in 1990 with the simple aim of helping people, primarily families with young children, to move from urban areas to rural locations.

They connect people who want to move with rural houses that need tenants, helping to make that transition as smooth as possible. Over 800 families have made that journey with them.

When we meet, Connolly has just finished conducting interviews with two more families hoping to move away from Dublin. Even though the country

has experienced such dramatic change and development since he first started the organisation, these latest families share many of the traits common to those who get in touch with RRI. Most of the people Connolly deals with are low-income families, most are on social welfare, and most have young children.

Having conducted so many of these interviews – always in person, always oneon-one – Connolly knows how to explain both the sacrifices and the opportunities inherent in the choice being made.

“The principal motivation has to be, and this is from experience, a real desire to move to the country,” he says.

“It never works if it’s a running away job from a bad situation, a running away job from a personal situation.”

Connolly and his wife Kathleen arrived in Kilbaha in 1972, two blow-ins with a pair of young children in tow. Now their three children and nine grandchildren all live in the area. His son, Seamus, is

one of Ireland’s leading bronze sculptors, with his statues of Richard Harris and John B. Keane on display on the streets of Kilkee and Listowel respectively. Though Connolly describes this familial clustering as a blessing which couldn’t be planned for, it does highlight how just one couple can make a significant contribution to the life of a rural community. It’s something he’s seen time and time again with those he has helped move to the west.

“Of those that have stayed in their new communities, some have long since become grandparents,” he says. “Their children would have married or had partners in the local community as they grow up. Little children I saw when they were three or four years of age are now mammies and daddies themselves. It moves on. The social benefit, in terms of adding people to a depopulated area, it expands exponentially as time goes on.”

Connolly had some difficulty preaching the gospel of rural resettlement when it

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NEW LEASE ON LIFE

Susan Morgan and Helen Carroll

first occurred to him. At the time, Loop Head was, he says, “a literally dying community.” At the same time, there were 300,000 people unemployed in Ireland in 1990, the vast majority of whom were in the greater Dublin area.

This harmful mix of surplus and deficit, overpopulation and depopulation, was the seed from which RRI began to grow.

“The received wisdom was, ‘Why would people come if there was no work?’, and that threw me for years because I couldn’t create work,” says Connolly. “But things were so bad at that time and I know from experience that possibly generations of those families have never had employment, they’re already living on welfare, the conditions couldn’t probably be worse in many cases. I thought maybe we could attract people to move for the quality of life.

And that’s exactly what happened.”

Having sent out copies of the idea to various journalists and media

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Susan Morgan, Liam Woulfe (Principal, Labasheeda National School) with presenter Helen Carroll; Chris & Janice O’Connor with their children Caden (baby) and Samuel pictured with Helen Carroll; Jim Connolly and his grandchildren; Jim Connolly and Helen Carroll; Rural Resettlement Ireland HQ

organisations, Connolly quickly found himself promoting the concept on Gay Byrne’s morning radio show, then the most popular radio programme in the country.

While Byrne himself thought the idea was “a bit daft,” his listeners were intrigued.

“That one week we had 100 letters come into my house,” Connolly recalls.

“They all said the same thing: we want a way out of here if you can find us a way. Most of them dismissed the idea of a grant – if you can find us a house, we’ll move. And they all said the same thing, and it’s been repeated in every communication we have; at some stage people say, ‘We’re doing this for the sake of our children.’ To my mind, that must be one of the most powerful motivations in human nature. That you would take such a step for the sake of your children.

Susan Morgan and her four children are among the hundreds of families who have moved to a new rural life with the help of RRI. Originally living in a small council house in Blanchardstown, she and her family left a cramped and stressful life in Dublin behind them when they moved to Co Clare following an interview with Jim Connolly. They have been living in the village of Labasheeda for the past two years. Speaking to Ear to the Ground in November, Susan noted that though it was a little hard to leave friends and family behind, it has undoubtedly been worth it.

“It’s a challenge to myself as a person to say ‘Yeah, I can step outside my comfort zone and I can still do fine. And I have great support around here, I have the best neighbours.” The children have long since settled in school, and Susan has joined the ICA which meets once a month, to “become a part of the community. It was like a step. Plus, to learn the etiquette of the country ways. The little idiosyncrasies and manners, country manners – the way of doing things in the country is completely different to the city way,” she says.

JIM SAYS:

“LITTLE CHILDREN I SAW WHEN THEY WERE THREE OR FOUR YEARS OF AGE ARE NOW MAMMIES AND DADDIES. IT MOVES ON.” EAR TO THE GROUND 105

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SUSAN SAYS:

“IT’S A CHALLENGE TO MYSELF AS A PERSON TO SAY ‘YEAH, I CAN STEP OUTSIDE MY COMFORT ZONE AND I CAN STILL DO FINE.” Rural resettlement was born then. I started on my own and then it grew.”

By the middle of its first decade, RRI had developed a relationship with the Department of the Environment and was able to generate a small budget to hire full-time staff while still providing their service free-of-charge. RRI employed five people when their government funding was fully cut in 2011, but the organisation is now down to Connolly, who has just turned 80 years old, and one part-time assistant. Continuing to provide the service in this situation is far from easy, but Connolly is committed.

“Dealing with 800 families, even over a long period, it’s not an amateur job really because you wouldn’t have the time,” he says. “It begins to look like a numbers game, with the numbers of families you’re dealing with, but it means as much to each individual family and each individual family member. The analogy that I would use would be that you could have two

dozen lads with broken arms in a hospital waiting to see a doctor. The fact that there’s two dozen of them doesn’t reduce the level of pain for any of them and they all have to be dealt with individually and carefully and looked after.”

Having seen so many different trends and eras come and go in Irish life, Connolly is acutely aware of the patterns of depopulation which continue to scar rural Ireland. So much has changed for country people – better housing, more single-parent families, neighbours who’ve come from other parts of the world – but the economic foundations of country life, often masked by the related but separate farming economy, are still shaky and many people are still leaving in order to find work. At the same time, major cities are becoming prohibitively expensive places to live, and so Connolly says the pull of the increasingly “cosmopolitan” countryside remains strong – perhaps one solution to the housing crisis.

“The normal motivation of people moving out of Dublin and into the country is quality of life,” he says. “If they can get a job and make a living, that’s a bonus. A lot of them have. A lot of them are artistic people who brought music with them, painting and decorating, who brought a work ethic with them as well. They don’t want to be spongers. The first driving school set up in west Clare, which was needed, was by a Dubliner who came down through rural resettlement. Again, long since grandparents, himself and his wife.”

As Connolly says time and time again, rural resettlement is about people. It’s about preserving a pattern of habitation in Ireland which goes back thousands of years, and it’s about giving people an opportunity to live a better life. The political implications of the project are secondary to the effect that people can have on a place which is in need of them.

“Where the population is reduced to zero, which is happening here and there in Ireland same as it’s happened all over rural Europe, then there’s zero potential for development of any kind,” he says. “A place that’s gone dead is going to die forever, unless it’s resettled. There’s no potential for development. It’s always about people.

One person can start a development.”

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TECHNOLOGY

EAR TO THE GROUND LOOKS AT SOME OF THE MOST INNOVATIVE AGRICULTURAL INVENTIONS FOR 2016.

Agriculture

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TECHNOLOGY

If some people have their way, farms of the future will feature a flurry of autonomous vehicles, from drones whirring through the skies above and monitoring progress, to robotic vehicles trundling through the fields, fertilising or harvesting crops.

One example is Case IH’s recently unveiled autonomous concept vehicle, a row crop tractor that can be used with a wide range of implements.

Created to measure the response to this new technology and inform future developments within the field of autonomous vehicles, the concept was based on a Case IH Magnum tractor with more futuristic styling. Onboard systems include radar, lidar and video cameras to sense stationary or moving obstacles, and pre-programmed operations can be remotely monitored from a desktop computer or tablet interface.

“In many parts of the world, finding skilled labour during peak use seasons is a constant challenge for our customers,” said Case IH Brand President Andreas Klauser. “While we offer auto-steering and telematics on our equipment today for remote management of farm machinery and employees, this autonomous tractor concept demonstrates how our customers and their employees could remotely monitor and control machines directly. This technology will offer our customers greater operational efficiencies for tasks such as tillage, planting, spraying and harvesting.”

FARMING ON MARS As part of the planned manned mission to Mars in 2030, researchers recently spent time working inside Hawaii Volcanoes National Park in a bid to understand more about collecting and protecting rock samples from contamination. It’s just one facet of an extraordinarily complex mission that must chart 483 million kilometres of deep space to reach the Red Planet.

Another is the issue of food, and the possibility of how crops could be grown on Mars to help sustain longterm missions. Among those currently investigating solutions is Dr Ray Wheeler, a plant physiologist with NASA and the lead for Advanced Life Support Research activities in the Exploration Research and Technology Program at the Kennedy Space Centre. Wheeler and his colleagues have been working on methods of growing crops off planet. That process has been somewhat successful so far – astronauts on the International Space Station harvested their first crop of red romaine lettuce last

Case IH autonomous concept vehicle

year, grown in special plant pouches as part of NASA’s Veggie system.

The topic raised its head among the general public with the release of The Martian last year. The film told the story of a botanist (played by Matt Damon) who was stranded on Mars for a year and a half and was forced to grow his own food to survive, developing an improvised farm using Martian soil and human waste for fertiliser to grow potatoes. “The Martian movie and book conveyed a lot of issues regarding growing food and surviving on a planet far from the Earth,” Wheeler said. “It’s brought plants back into the equation.”

Potatoes could be one of the crops grown by astronauts on Mars, and Wheeler has been conducting tests on growing potato plants using a hydroponic recirculating system, which recaptures and recirculates water. A number of challenges must be surmounted, however – water and light are both in short supply on Mars, and any crops would have to be protected from radiation.

REDUCING YOUR COSTS Developed by UL lecturer and part-time farmer Dr John Garvey, FarmHedge is a mobile app aimed at saving money for farmers and reducing costs for farm suppliers. Inspired by Garvey’s experiences on the family farm outside Ennis, Co Clare, FarmHedge is a two-pronged source of information. Firstly, farmers can receive alerts regarding weather risks on an hourly basis, while users can also avail of ten-day forecasts. Secondly, farmers can book deliveries of inputs like feed and fertiliser from their regular suppliers.

Because suppliers receive early information about demand, both individual and group

A view from the Kimberley formation on Mars taken by NASA’s Curiosity rover. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

discounts are available when booking via the app, which is free to download from the Apple App Store and Google Play.

UBER FOR TRACTORS If you don’t own your own car and you’re stuck for a lift, Uber is a handy service – a few taps of the app and an Uber driver will be on his or her way to collect you.

A similar concept could soon see more widespread use of tractors in rural India thanks to TRRINGO, a ‘tractor hailing app’ which was launched in September

by Mahindra Group. Alongside bookings through the app, farmers in regions without internet access who are looking to use a tractor or farm equipment for a particular task can call a toll-free number and will be put in contact with a local hub, removing the need for investment in often expensive equipment.

“We are pleased to inaugurate TRRINGO’s first two custom hiring centers in Western Maharashtra.

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reducing cost,” said Arvind Kumar, CEO, TRRINGO. “With the launch of the custom hiring centres in Karad, we will reach out directly to the farmers and enable them to deploy mechanisation technology on a pay per use basis without having to invest in the asset. Further, it will generate rural employment and help bridge the gap between requirement and availability, offering farmers easy access to a wide variety of tractors.”

HANDS-FREE FARMING Engineering staff at Harper Adams University in the UK, working with precision farming firm Precision Decisions Ltd., are in the process of growing and harvesting a hectare of cereal crops without stepping foot in the field, as part of the Hands Free Hectare project.

The team are currently preparing their autonomous machinery for the attempt, which is due to begin next March with the drilling of a spring crop, finishing with the harvest in August and September.

“As a team, we believe there is now no technological barrier to automated field agriculture. This project gives us the opportunity to prove this and change current public perception. Previously, people have [automated] sections of agricultural systems, but funding and interest generally only goes towards one single area. We’re hoping to string everything together to create one whole system, which will allow us to farm our hectare of cereal crop from establishment to harvest, without having to go into the field,” said Kit Franklin, one of the project researchers. “We are confident that we are going to be successful [in] implementing current open source technology, but obviously there is an element of risk. This is the first time in the world that this has been done, but pushing boundaries is what engineering research is about. We will be using small-scale machinery that is already available on the market, and adapting these in the university’s engineering labs ready for the autonomous field work.”

The project was inspired by the continued enlargement of farm vehicles which the team says reduces soil health through compaction, affecting plant growth, among other issues. Automated machines could leave a smaller footprint on farmland, facilitating precision farming and optimising outputs.

“Automation undoubtedly will become a large part of agriculture’s future. By working with Harper Adams, the leading global centre for agricultural robotic research, this allows us to understand

the challenges autonomous solutions bring and to develop new tools and services from this opportunity,” said Clive Blacker, MD at Precision Decisions and project lead. “What we learn from this experience is fundamental in allowing us to fulfil the needs of tomorrow’s farmer, to fully embrace the digital revolution we face today.”

VIRTUAL DEFENCE Farmers could soon use a high-powered laser light to protect their crops from rats and other pets. An alternative to the use of poison, LIFE Laser Fence aims to reduce and eliminate the use of rodenticide, and cut crop losses in half. Using the Agrilaser Autonomic system which repels birds (developed by Bird Control Group), the project involves a partnership between John Moores University in Liverpool, Bird Control Group and others in the UK and Spain. Funded by the European Commission, trials have begun in Scotland, the Netherlands and Spain.

Speaking to the BBC, project coordinator Dr Alex Mason noted that while the technology is already a commercial product with a wide range of uses, the project is examining applications for agriculture. “It already works very well on birds. We hope it will work on rats, badgers, foxes and rabbits too,” he said.

TESTING, TESTING A new blood test to detect mycobacterium bovis, which causes bovine tuberculosis (bTB), has been developed by a team at the University of Nottingham, led by Dr Cath Rees from the School of Biosciences and Dr Ben Swift from the School of Veterinary Medicine and Science. The test, which is reported to be near the commercialisation stage, detects low levels of mycobacterium, with results available in as little as six hours.

“This test delivers results within 48 hours and the frequency in which viable mycobacteria were detected in the blood of skin test positive animals changes the paradigm of this disease,” said Dr Rees.

“Using our bacteriophage-based test the hope is that we can help improve herd control by finding animals at the early stages of infection and helping farmers control outbreaks of bTB more rapidly.”

TRACKING TRAITS Researchers at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in Missouri, a not-for-profit research institute which

A strawberry field in Norway.

Photo: Tobias Van Der Elst/ Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)

aims to use plant science to improve human life, are leading the way in crop phenotyping (assessing plant traits like growth, development, yield etc.) with the PheNode, a solar-powered environmental sensor and phenotyping station.

Developed by Dr Nadia Shakoor, Todd Mockler and other colleagues at the institute, sensors and cameras built into the PheNode take real-time measurements of a variety of factors such as temperature, humidity, rainfall, air quality, soil moisture and temperature, and pH. Information gleaned from these readings is beneficial in terms of crop improvement and precision agriculture. The PheNode is powered by a solar panel and backed up by a solar battery. Sensor data is stored locally and then transferred via Bluetooth or WiFi. “With a suite of diverse sensors on the PheNode, we can continuously monitor field crops for growth rate, stem diameter, height, leaf shape, leaf angles, canopy closure, light interception and the relationship of these traits to enhanced

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Dogtooth’s autonomous robot A drilling rig is positioned to deepen a tube well that has gone dry in Kolar district of Karnataka state, India

canopy photosynthesis. The PheNode will help crop science innovators to identify ideal canopy architectural and leaf metabolic features to breed crops for increased yield,” said Dr Nadia Shakoor, a research scientist in the Todd Mockler laboratory. “We see a need for more sustainable crop production with minimal water and energy inputs, and a need to anticipate changing environmental conditions, like elevated CO2 levels, that will affect farming.”

Alongside monitoring the plant canopy (the aboveground section), one version of the PheNode includes a system which can take images of the crop roots beneath the soil, offering real-time observation of root growth and development.

“The PheNode uses quite sophisticated imaging and sensor technology that we

use in advanced research to understand how plants work,” said Dr James Carrington, President of the Danforth Center. “Delivering it to the farm will help growers make better decisions to manage their crops, reduce their environmental footprint and costs.”

AUTOMATION NATION Fruit picking could become an automated task in the not-so-distant future, thanks to an invention from UK firm Dogtooth Technologies. Their prototype strawberry picking robot was unveiled at the 2016 Agri-Tech East Reap conference in Cambridge, a device that has been several years in the making and is currently in testing on customer farms.

The brainchild of founders Ed

Herbert, Duncan Robertson and Mat Cook, Ed was inspired during a two month road trip along the west coast of America, which took him through the Sacramento Valley orchards and the strawberry fields around Monterey Bay in California. Driven by a desire to develop a technology to improve yields and harvest soft fruits such as strawberries, the first automatic picking of strawberries took place in October 2015 and the technology continues to be developed. The robot can navigate strawberry rows, locate ripe fruit using a memory bank of images, and place them in a punnet with its robotic arm. With the ability to deliver consistent performance throughout the day, the robot can also pick after dark when temperatures are lower, maximising the fruit’s shelf life. At the moment this takes approximately 12 seconds per strawberry, but plans are in place to halve this time by next year, with 5-10 robots undertaking early stage commercial trials during the 2017 growing season. The robot is expected to be available commercially from 2018, with widespread adoption anticipated by 2020.

“Our focus is on automating the harvest of crops that require delicate handling and ripen over a season.

Strawberry harvesting is the primary goal, with the technologies applicable to crops ranging from daffodils to apples.

Our small team employs cutting-edge techniques and technologies from an array of fields: computer vision, mechatronics, and control systems to name but a few,” the company says on its website.

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

Helping Hand Cattle technology is often about managing ever growing herds and automating tasks. An Irish company is bringing technology to small and medium herds through a sensor that notifies about imminent calvings.

Calving time is always a busy time on any cattle farm. Constant monitoring, little sleep and having to be absent from off-farm jobs and events can often make a farmer feel isolated and exposed. In addition, losing a cow or a calf can often incur large financial losses and put even more stress on a farmer already feeling pressure from milk and beef prices, subsidy uncertainty and other creditors.

After losing a cow and calf, inventor Niall Austin of Birr in Co Offaly found himself in that position and researched if a technological solution was present in the market to alert him of difficult calvings.

Unable to find anything, he got together with Michael Stanley and Emmet Savage to research and develop a product to do just that – the Moocall calving sensor.

“The Moocall calving sensor works

by reading movement and vibration of the tail and spine. Our custom algorithm interprets this data and determines when calving is imminent, at which point the sensor sends a text message, an email and an app notification to the farmer alerting that calving is underway,” explains Emmet Savage, now CEO of Moocall Ltd. “This enables the farmer to be there for the calving in case the cow or calf needs assistance or if a vet needs to attend, thus enabling the farmer to continue work on or off the farm as normal, only needing to interrupt that work when the alert comes. It even allows for a full night’s sleep without needing to get up every couple hours to go check on your herd.”

“The Moocall calving sensor connects directly to the mobile network and doesn’t need any extra equipment, bar a mobile

phone,” Savage continues. “As long as there’s a signal in the area and the farmer is able to receive text messages, that’s all it takes. The technology we use is similar to the one you’ll find in smartphones and tablets. These proven components plus our own algorithm allows us to provide notification on over 95 per cent of all calvings regardless of breed.”

After four years in research and development, the Moocall calving sensor launched at the National Ploughing Championships in 2014 for pre-orders and went on general sale in January 2015.

In the two years since 18,000 sensors have been sold in 35 countries around the world. Getting started with a Moocall calving sensor is easy and risk free, considering the company offers a 60-day money-back guarantee.

TO FIND OUT MORE VISIT WWW.MOOCALL.COM OR CALL 01 969 6038 112 EAR TO THE GROUND

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INDUSTRY

High Spirits IRELAND’S CURRENT TIPPLE OF CHOICE IS BEING PRODUCED BY THE GLASSFUL ALL OVER THE ISLE. BUT WHAT EXACTLY IS GIVING IRISH GIN AND ITS MAKERS THE EDGE ON THE MARKET? JO LINEHAN INVESTIGATES. It’s hard to say just when exactly that old aunty’s favourite, the humble G&T, went from a reliable after dinner digestif to one of the most savoured and conversation-worthy drinks of the decade. There’s scarcely a bar in the country today which doesn’t offer a decent selection of Irish gins, each with their own unique take on the classic.

Much like the craft beer trend, gin has become democratised, produced by small, enthusiastic and dedicated brewers, each with their own unique interpretation of the spirit, whose origins date back as far as the Middle Ages. But what kick-started this gin regeneration?

And what’s in it for the passionate Irish producers who are heavily investing in this juniper berry blend?

Southern Success Justin Green, proprietor of the award-winning country house Ballyvolane, Co Cork, and his business partner Antony Jackson, launched BERTHA’S REVENGE (named after the country estate’s beloved cow) in December 2015. The pair are the company’s sole operators, distilling, labelling, bottling and marketing the gin themselves from the small on-site distillery and its two 125 litre copper stills. It’s a cottage industry at its best. “The only thing we don’t get involved in is the actual fermentation of the milk whey,” Green tells me. “We buy it from Carbery, a large dairy plant in west Cork. The whey alcohol has ticked so many boxes for us, as we wanted to use a base spirit that is evocative of our terroir and also one that is produced in Ireland.” In just over a year, Bertha’s has been awarded Drink of the Year 2016 by John & Sally McKenna’s Megabites Award, and they also took home a prize from the International Wines and Spirits competition in London.

With production of this orange-infused, spicy and sweet citrus blend churning out between 400 and 600 litres per week, and stockists across Ireland, the UK, Luxembourg, Singapore, Hong Kong and, most recently, New York and Chicago, what’s next on the agenda? “We’re releasing our Sloe Bertha later this month and our Damson Bertha in early 2017,” Green explains. “We do plan to produce some other fruit infused gins and a premium vodka in 2017. Our hope is that one day Bertha will be the most loved cow in the world.”

Meanwhile in Dingle, another small-batch producer has been making a name for its unique blend of rowan berry from the mountain ash trees, fuchsia, bog myrtle, hawthorn and heather, a taste of the Kerry landscape. Oliver Hughes and his cousin Liam LaHart, both involved in the Porterhouse Brewery company, had wanted to open a smaller distillery for some time. The DINGLE DISTILLERY has been brewing whiskey and distilling vodka since 2012, and while their gin has been healthily received in the market, for them, gin and vodka are economical ways to keep the business thriving while their whiskey is in production.

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INDUSTRY

Clockwise from top left: Antony Jackson and Justin Green; The diverse ingredients for Bertha’s Revenge (Photos: Clare Keogh); Inside Dingle Distillery; Dingle Original Gin. Photo: Tom Doherty Photography.

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The Organic Touch Ireland’s first organic gin comes in by way of Kilkenny’s Highbank Orchard, a picturesque farm just in Cuffesgrange.

The passion of husband and wife duo Rod and Julie Calder-Potts, along with their son and daughter, lies in all things organic and with their exquisite, highly celebrated apple ciders, apple liqueurs, syrups and vodka filling a niche in the market both here and abroad, gin seemed like a natural progression. The orchard ABOVE: Rod and Julie Calder-Potts in their orchard in Kilkenny. offers two types – their FLAMINGO gin, a BELOW LEFT and RIGHT: The Shortcross still and Shortcross pink spirit favoured by wedding parties Gin. Photos: Christopher Martin and Valentine’s Day sweethearts, and their ORGANIC APPLE CRYSTAL GIN, a blend of apples, juniper, lavender, blackcurrant, thyme, mint and rosehip. “Our gin customers, specifically, are millennial and they want a beautiful, clean drink which is exactly what we provide,” says Julie.

When it comes to investment, Julie is quick to see the value in seeing the bigger picture, “What has really been amazing for us has been opening up the farm to visitors, with the help of Fáilte Ireland and Ireland’s Ancient East,” she says. “Agri tourism is changing how we meet and get to know our customer and has helped open us up to a whole other side of our farm to the public.”

The bigger picture is also kept in mind at Rademon Estate Distillery, Co Down, Northern Ireland’s first award-winning craft distillery which is producing SHORTCROSS GIN, a floral blend highlighted with wild berries and grassy notes. The eight-person strong company is selling products across Ireland, the UK, Europe and Dubai. “We aim to do things a little differently,” husband and wife team Fiona and David Boyd-Armstrong explain. “We’ve combined the best of old and new technology via our 450 litre copper pot still and our two enrichment columns. We wanted to rekindle a distilling tradition that spans back centuries in Ireland. It’s taken time to build our distillery and craft our skills so now, when we distil, we do so slowly. We hand bottle, wax dip and sign each bottle of Shortcross.” The couple’s journey began in 2012 when they travelled across Europe, Northern America and Asia, researching and immersing themselves in the distillation and spirits industry.

Having received over 15 high profile and prestigious local and global awards since their launch, the future is bright for the burgeoning business.“We have lots of exciting plans in the pipeline. In 2015, we laid the first casks of our Malt Irish Whiskey to rest and we’re very excited to open the doors to our much anticipated visitors and exhibition space in early 2017. We’re set to offer Ireland’s first and only multi-sensory gin experience,” they explain.

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A Different Tack Who would have thought that a green tea-infused gin would be so delicious?

In the wilds of Drumshanbo, Co Laois, PJ Rigney of The Shed Distillery began experimenting with oriental traditions of distilling fruit, herbs and botanicals, with medieval copper pot stills, and combined oriental botanicals with the local Irish ones on his doorstep. No stranger to experimentation and innovation, PJ is most famous for creating the Sheridan’s Irish Cream recipe, and had long yearned to give distillation a real go. He began with whiskey in December 2014, and exactly one year later ventured into his now much revered gin. Their customer is ‘inquisitive, experimental’ and one who is more than willing to invest in a premium priced bottle for their sins (a bottle of Gunpowder retails for €53.99). “A large part of the inspiration for the business came from wanting to help regenerate the area,” PJ explains. “And we’ve succeeded. In total, there are ten people working here, seven of whom were taken off the live register, trained, and now work with us in The Shed.” Supported by Enterprise Ireland and Bord Bia, PJ is now turning his focus towards a new gin. “It’s a very unique collaboration between ourselves and the Hardenberg family in Germany (one of the most respected brewers in the world),” he says. “They are supplying their own local botanicals while we’ll provide the Irish craft. We can’t wait to see Von Hallers sitting prettily next to its older sibling on shelves.”

St Patrick’s Distillery in Cork is also proudly filling a niche in the market via its100 per cent gluten-free spirit. Managing Director Tom Knightley’s background in pharmaceuticals gave him an edge on the non-grain production route, and it has proven to be an invaluable slant on the emerging market. Cyril Walsh, the distillery’s general manager, is slow to confirm exact numbers on their weekly output but insists that while the company is small (with a workforce of five people), St Patrick’s is going from strength to strength. “We’ve only been in business for 18 months, but the response has been incredible,” he explains. “Currently, we’re stocked in the Cork, Shannon and Dublin duty frees and are exporting to Germany and the US. [We have begun] exporting to Russia. For us, the name St Patrick’s has been a big selling point; customers know immediately that what they are buying is Irish, and that’s important to so many people.” The company currently brews four different types of gin; their CLASSIC JUNIPER blend, EXTRA DRY GIN (a less sweet version of the original), ELDERFLOWER GIN (the only 40 per cent gin in the market) and a SLOE & HONEY GIN. The potato base means it’s a 100 per cent grain free blend, and while the product is in steady demand, whiskey is still a gateway to greater markets, something St Patrick’s is looking to expand into shortly.

There are currently 17 craft gins registered in Ireland, most of them in production for no more than three years. Compared to so many other alcoholic drinks, gin’s distillation process is a short and fruitful one, and with the market’s current enthusiasm for the spirit, these producers have certainly honed in on a niche that needs to be filled. If there’s a common thread to be found between all of these small and determined distillers, it’s their passion to bottle a little piece of their locality – whether that’s via locally grown botanicals and herbs or by reigniting a part of a local history, once forgotten. Crafty, or what?

TOP: The still in Drumshanbo.

ABOVE: Labelling the fresh product. Photo: Adrian van der Lee. LEFT: The final product. Photo: White Cloud Photography. BELOW: The finest from The Shed Distillery.

Photo: Adrian van der Lee. BELOW LEFT: St Patrick’s Distillery Potato Gin. Photo: Miki Barlok

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COMPETITION

AN EXCLUSIVE DINE & DREAM ESCAPE TO KILKENNY

To celebrate the launch of a brand new dining break to Kilkenny, Ear to the Ground has teamed up with Michelin-listed Ristorante Rinuccini and the beautiful fourstar Kilkenny River Court Hotel to give one lucky reader the chance to win an overnight stay and lavish dinner in the Marble City.

One lucky couple will indulge in a three-course Italian dining experience at Ristorante Rinuccini, enjoy an overnight stay at the luxurious Kilkenny River Court Hotel, followed the next day with a full Irish or healthy option breakfast. Situated in the heart of the city centre, the Kilkenny River Court Hotel is the perfect base to enjoy the unique atmosphere of Kilkenny with its spectacular views over the River Nore, tree-lined canal walk and the iconic Kilkenny Castle. The hotel is ideally located close to the city’s top shopping and cultural attractions and Ristorante Rinuccini, Kilkenny’s longest established restaurant. Having recently won ‘Ireland’s European Restaurant’ at the Gold Medal Awards, Chef Antonio Cavaliere has created a sumptuous three-course Italian meal for the lucky winners featuring classic Italian dishes such as porchetta pinuccini and tiramisu.

The Dine and Dream accommodation package for two people includes bed and breakfast, dinner at Ristorante Rinuccini with afternoon tea. To book see www.

Rinuccini.com / www.rivercourthotel. com or call 056 772 0663.

TO BE IN WITH A CHANCE OF WINNING THIS GORGEOUS PRIZE, SIMPLY EMAIL ETTGCOMPETITIONS@ ASHVILLEMEDIAGROUP.COM WITH YOUR NAME, CONTACT DETAILS AND ANSWER TO THE FOLLOWING QUESTION:

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TERMS AND CONDITIONS Closing Date: January 31st 2017. Competition not open to employees of Ashville Media Group, Ristorante Rinuccini or Kilkenny River Court Hotel. No cash or gift card will be awarded in lieu of prize. Winner will be selected at random. The winner will receive an overnight stay at four-star Kilkenny River Court Hotel with breakfast for two people plus three course dinner at the Michelin listed Ristorante Rinuccini from the Dine & Dream menu. The offer is valid mid-week Sunday to Thursday, excluding bank-holidays, until May 31st 2017. Applicants must be over 18 and this offer is subject to availability.

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ARTS

Ireland’s First Farmers

FROM BOOM TO BUST, IRELAND HAS BEEN FARMED FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS. EAR TO THE GROUND INVESTIGATES THE EVIDENCE LEFT AND LEGACIES BESTOWED ON US BY THE COUNTRY’S EARLIEST FARMERS.

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HISTORY

PHOTO: VALERIE O’SULLIVAN

“ONE OF THE COUNTRY’S BEST EXAMPLES OF VERY EARLY FARMING ARE THE CÉIDE FIELDS IN CO MAYO, WHICH DATE TO AROUND 3,500BC.”

S

ix thousand years ago, the Neolithic revolution (also known as the agricultural revolution) arrived and spread very quickly across Ireland, becoming a way of life. Farming first started around the Fertile Crescent, now modern day Israel and Syria, around 12,000 years ago. It gradually made its way up through Europe, arriving to Ireland, probably via Scotland. The earliest farmers practised mixed farming. They cleared forests to graze their animals, chose sheltered locations and lived in isolated settlements, for the most part.

We know this because these early

farmers’ remains are occasionally discovered and excavated by archaeologists. Meriel McClatchie is an assistant professor at the UCD School of Archaeology and also the director of the Ancient Foods Research Group, which explores the foods eaten by our ancestors from as early as the Mesolithic huntergatherers; she explains how various excavations have helped to create a pretty good picture of the early farmers’ lifestyle.

“What we find on a lot of excavations of the early farmers is actual food remains, such as animal bones, which tell us the types of animals these people were eating; we’re finding bones that suggest they

were raising cattle, sheep and pigs,” she says. “Then we find little tiny burnt seeds, which are the crops – what happens is if the crops come into contact with fire and become charred then they can survive in the ground for thousands of years – and we can reconstruct what the first farmers were eating: wheat, particularly, and barley, but it was an older type of wheat, emmer wheat, the earliest wheat. Oat and rye are much later introductions to Ireland – they only came in roughly 2,000 years ago. They were producing crops on a sustainable level for themselves.”

One of the country’s best examples of very early farming are the Céide Fields in Co Mayo, which date to around 3,500BC. They are the oldest known field systems in the world and show how early farmers organised their farms. Thankfully, the fields have been well preserved over the past 5,500 years by the growth of blanket bog. Meriel says that one of the recent discoveries unearthed there suggests they may have even been used for dairy farming, as some of the vessels excavated contain residues of lipids and fats from dairy products.

“What we see in Ireland from the very beginning of farming is that they were growing wheat and barley, they were raising animals but not just for meat; we know that they were producing dairy products as well. They were also making pottery vessels for the first time too. So we have built up a very nice picture of what people were eating and how they were farming,” says Meriel.

To date, around 80 Neolithic houses have been discovered at 50 sites around the country. These were settled farmers living in mostly isolated farmsteads, and occasionally small villages of a few houses. In Corbally, Co Kildare, an early farming settlement of nine houses was discovered, and at least five were discovered at Thornhill in Derry, but more often individual houses are found.

These early farmers’ houses were large, rectangle-shaped structures, generally with deep slot-trenches to support heavy wooden walls. Their roofs were probably thatched.

The uptake of farming in Ireland was very quick. “What is interesting in Ireland, when farming arrived within about a

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HISTORY Poulnabrone dolmen

IRELAND’S ANCIENT EAST Ireland’s Ancient East, a tourism initiative launched in 2015 by Fáilte Ireland, offers an itinerary full of prehistoric sites.

Festival of the Fires. Photo: Failte Ireland

Hill of Uisneach This site in Westmeath that is also a working farm is home to the remains of circular enclosures, barrows, cairns and a holy well.

Ancient people lit fires at Uisneach to mark Bealtaine, the beginning of summer.

Cavan Burren Park Megalithic tombs in Cavan Burren Park include wedge and portal tombs. Ancient huts, field walls, a promontory fort, cist graves, ‘modified boulder’ monuments and prehistoric rock art have also been discovered here.

Brú na Bóinne Without doubt, Newgrange is the most famous megalithic site, best known for the illumination of its passage and chamber at winter solstice. Also worth a visit in the Boyne Valley are the tombs of Knowth, Dowth, Fourknocks, Loughcrew and Tara.

Brownshill dolmen

Brownshill Dolmen The Brownshill Dolmen is a megalithic portal tomb in Co Carlow. Its granite capstone weighs over 100 tonnes, making it the largest of its kind in Europe. It is thought that religious rites, possibly even human sacrifices, were performed there for 4,500 years.

Lough Gur Sunlight still illuminates the stone circle at Lough Gur, Co Limerick, at summer solstice. The embankment and arrangement of the 12 orthostats indicates that they had a ritual purpose.

century it spread to most parts of the island. We’ve been undertaking very detailed radio carbon dating programmes, so that is quite a recent discovery that it spread very rapidly,” Meriel explains. “However, one of the things that we are still trying to understand is that [farming] comes in and spreads very quickly but around 1,000 years later evidence for farming is much harder to detect. We know they were changing their house styles, we find the monumental tombs being erected but there isn’t so much evidence for farming. Is it that farming is abandoned fully? I don’t think that is the case, but there was certainly a change in lifestyle. That again is a new discovery and something that we don’t understand fully and are investigating. It comes back again, so we’re just trying to work out what was happening around that period – that’s around the period of Newgrange and when the tombs were being erected, so we know there were still lots of people around.”

Evidence of these earliest farmers is hard to see on the Irish landscape. Most of the evidence discovered is very small and fragmentary. But within about 1,000 years the Neolithic farmers were building monumental tombs and structures. There are four types of megalithic tombs in Ireland: passage tombs, court tombs, portal tombs or dolmens and later, wedge tombs.

There are remains of more than 1,000 megalithic tombs around Ireland. The passage tomb at Newgrange, of course, is Ireland’s most famous structure from this period. There is a lottery each year to attend Newgrange at the winter solstice to see the sun fill the inner chamber, and this year there were almost 33,000 applicants.

Clare Tuffy manages the visitor centre at Brú na Bóinne (the ancient landscape in Co Meath which is home to the prehistoric sites of Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth as well as an additional 90 monuments) and appeared on Ear to the Ground earlier this year. “We know these were the first people anywhere in the world to pin down exactly the major

“WITHIN ABOUT 1,000 YEARS THE NEOLITHIC FARMERS WERE BUILDING MONUMENTAL TOMBS AND STRUCTURES.”

solar events of the calendar,” she says.

“Newgrange is aligned to the sunrise of the winter solstice and it is the oldest known deliberately oriented structure anywhere in the world. Because our Irish winters are so dark it would have been really important to our ancestors to pin that moment down so they could regulate their lives, celebrate that the year had turned and look forward to the next cycle.”

But Newgrange isn’t the only example of these people’s understanding of the sun and the changing seasons. At equinox (March and September) at Loughcrew megalithic Cairn T, the rising sun illuminates the passage and chamber. And at summer solstice, sunlight illuminates the standing stone circle at Lough Gur, Co Limerick.

The tombs show a great respect for the afterlife. Poulnabrone portal tomb in Co Clare is one of the few tombs in Ireland to have been excavated.

Twenty-two bodies were found and their condition suggested a complex burial in which they were probably first buried elsewhere before the bones were placed in the tomb. Some of them showed scorch marks suggesting they may have been burnt to expedite the preparation process; others suggest that this may have been a purification ritual.

The skeletal remains showed that these people probably lived quite short lives; their back and neck bones indicated that they were used to carrying heavy loads and their teeth showed signs of malnutrition.

These mystical monuments dotted around the country may not have survived only for the farmers who have protected them over the millennia and preserved them for future generations.

A lot is known about Ireland’s early farmers, but a lot remains to be understood – what explains the decline in farming in Ireland around the time the tombs were being built, and what were they eating? And why were they so in tune with the movement of the sun, stars and seasons? The answers to these questions may very well be buried in the ground.

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BUSINESS

raising the bar The great Irish pub is an institution.

Almost anyone who has received a postcard from this country knows it to be true. But that doesn’t mean it’s impenetrable to fiscal challenges. For all the iconic imagery, pubs still need to see money coming across the bar.

Irish publicans have been blitzed in recent years by one test after another.

The smoking ban was expected to take a huge chunk out of their customer base. Then the recession came, forcing people to count the coins usually set aside for socialising more prudently.

Consumer habits, too, are forever changing. Pubs need to evolve or risk going the way of the dodo, Arthur’s Day and Bud Light Lime.

Despite this, the industry is enjoying a wave of optimism. According to Vintners Federation Ireland (VFI), the graph is moving upward, fuelled by growing levels of disposable income and increasing numbers of tourists. But the development of the Irish pub in recent years, the organisation stresses, is mainly due to the resilience and innovation demonstrated by the publicans themselves. Their offering now includes greater quality food and a focus on entertainment through music, comedy, events and sport.

“The pub offering throughout

Ireland has changed to meet the demands of modern customers,” says VFI CEO Padraig Cribbon. “High quality food plays a bigger part. There is greater diversity of drink offerings, including specialist whiskeys and gins and cocktails. This is combined, as always, with a variety of entertainment, hospitality and the warmth of the Irish pub welcome. It’s worth highlighting food in particular here. Irish pubs offer

Owner Barry Flanagan outside Lock 13.

some of the best value and – importantly – quality food in the country.” In fact, Bórd Bia figures released in December 2015 show that a quarter of all food consumed outside the home is in pubs.

Barry Flanagan owns Lock 13 in the village of Sallins, Co Kildare. He’s one of the many publicans who foresaw doom for Irish pubs, and recognised early the need to change. “If you’d asked me seven years ago, I would have said that the publican trade moving forward would be extinct if there wasn’t a change in the business,” Flanagan says.

In response, Lock 13 underwent a large-scale transition. Its bar and lounge were separated. The bar now serves as a more traditional spot, while the lounge was transformed into a gastropub.

Good quality food and craft beer are now core tenets of the pub’s ethos.

For Flanagan, it was a daunting redevelopment, but one that was necessary. “If we didn’t change our offering with the competitor we have next to us, the two of us would have been out of business, or one of us would have been out of business,” he says. “We weren’t attracting new customers in. We weren’t giving anything exciting to the people of Sallins or the surrounding areas of Naas and Clane.”

LOCK 13 IMAGES: TONY G MURRAY PHOTOGRAPHY

THE IRISH PUB HAS EXPERIENCED A VARIETY OF CHALLENGES IN RECENT YEARS, BUT THE INDUSTRY IS DETERMINED TO EMERGE AS A STRONGER AND MORE VITAL NATIONAL INSTITUTE, WRITES DEAN VAN NGUYEN.

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BUSINESS

Butterfields in Ballitore, Co Kildare, a traditional Irish pub run by three generations of the same family, which featured in The Irish Pub

Good, quality food has become a core part of Lock 13

Lock 13, Sallins.

The Gravediggers in Glasnevin, a locals’ pub located next to Glasnevin Cemetery

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BUSINESS LEFT: Owner Annie McGinn outside H McGinn’s pub in Co Monaghan, Ireland, which has been in the family since 1912. The Irish Pub photos courtesy Element Pictures

BARRY SAYS:

“IF WE DIDN’T CHANGE OUR OFFERING WITH THE COMPETITOR WE HAVE NEXT TO US, THE TWO OF US WOULD HAVE BEEN OUT OF BUSINESS, OR ONE OF US WOULD HAVE BEEN OUT OF BUSINESS.” Deirdre Devitt is chair of the Licensed Vintners Association (LVA) and – as co-owner of Dublin pubs Devitts, on Camden Street, and The Sisters, Terenure – a fourth generation publican. Both establishments also saw the need to adapt to consumer tastes and habits.

That meant a move to premium gins, top-shelf whiskeys, cocktails and upmarket coffees. To further engage with their customers, initiatives like themed nights, tapas menu Tuesdays and a baby group on a Wednesday morning were also introduced. “We went from what was called the recession where value for money meant everything to, in the last 18 months, two years, a trend for quality over quantity,” Devitt says.

There are, however, more challenges that publicans are keen to stress. Devitt believes the industry continues to be “highly over-regulated” and it’s hurting the pub’s bottom line. “There are licenses for everything now,” she says. “Although I’m not disputing you need licenses for food standards, health and safety etc., the cost of business is on the up every day.”

Devitt slams Ireland’s licensing laws as “archaic”, pointing to the Good Friday ban on alcohol sales as an example.

The Catholic tradition of staying off the booze was enshrined in law in 1927.

Earlier this year, the VFI and the LVA

launched the #AboutTime campaign with the aim of convincing the Government to change a law they call “discriminatory”.

“Good Friday would be a big issue for all of us,” says Devitt. “It should be like any other Friday. Look at Dublin city on Good Friday, you’ve nothing but tourists walking around looking for a place to go.

We firmly believe that should change.”

“We are a multicultural society now,” she adds. “We’re not forcing people to go to the pub if they don’t want to, but I thoroughly believe in choice.”

In addition, with the increase in demand for better quality food, the availability of staff – particularly chefs – is an issue. According to Cribbon, a “coordinated approach to the recruitment and training of chefs needs to be implemented”.

This concern is echoed by Devitt.

“Staffing is becoming a huge problem for people. The country is probably 5,000 chefs short, so we really have to drive the interest of people to go back into that trade,” she says. “To make it more exciting for them, to encourage people to come from abroad to work in Ireland as a chef, to change the visa situation so more people can come easier and you can sponsor people in the hope they’ll stay. There’s an awful lot of skill in it.”

For some, the inevitable evolution

away from some of the core tenets of the traditional Irish pub is regrettable. Alex Fegan is the director of 2013 film The Irish Pub, which the Washington Post called “a lovingly laid-back documentary about the charms, liquid and otherwise, of the traditional Irish watering hole”.

He accepts there’s “good reason” for certain aspects to disappear, but is still saddened by some of the changes.

“The pubs have to bring in food to bring the people back and that takes away from that atmosphere that you get, because rather than people sitting down chatting, there are people partitioned off at their own tables, so it goes from an Irish pub to a more American style pub,” he argues. “So they’re kind of natural evolutions that just happen through progress.”

Such progress is always occurring, though. As Fegan says himself, “In times past, pubs were not just pubs, they were the local grocery shop and they were the undertakers.” They may no longer be quite so multi-functional, but Padraig Cribbon believes that pubs continue to be the mainstay of many local communities across this country, particularly in rural areas. “When you see post offices, tourist offices and Garda stations closing, our responsibility to our communities takes on even greater importance as people will rely upon us for essential services,” he says.

Cribbon and the VFI would now like to see rural regeneration – such as access to broadband – become a priority for the State. As he points out, “not all publicans and all parts of the country have experienced this greater level of positivity. It has not reached all areas, and pubs in city centres, large towns and tourist areas will usually recover first.”

Though there’s plenty distance left to run, the industry is about as optimistic as it’s been in a long time.

Their message is as clear as a gin and tonic: it’s a very positive time to be in the pub game right now. This great Irish institution looks set to continue.

That’s something worth drinking to.

“As an industry, we are in a better position than we were a few years back and again, that is testament to publicans who have demonstrated resilience, creativity, passion and pride to fight their way back,” Cribbon says. “We have demonstrated again and again that we are ready to meet changing customer needs and the challenges of doing business.”

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SPORT

Going Global GIVEN THE RECENT SUCCESS OF THE 2016 GAA WORLD GAMES, THE ASSOCIATION IS CONSIDERING MAKING THE EVENT A REGULAR FEATURE, HELPING TO FOSTER A SPORT THAT IS PLAYED IN MORE PLACES THAN MOST WOULD IMAGINE.

“In the past we used to bring our Gaelic games all around the world but we kept it to ourselves. In the recent past, all the newer, younger Irish who are going abroad are now sharing it with the local people.”

Those were comments made by GAA President Aogán Ó Fearghaíl to The Irish Times when speaking about the GAA World Games back in August, and it was something that was on full show at Belfield in UCD where more than 1,700 players from 56 teams and 20 countries participated in the tournament. The fascinating feature of this year’s games was the strong showing of players from

outside the traditional GAA strongholds of Britain and North America, with the event drawing many non-Irish players from countries as diverse as Argentina, South Africa and Oman. According to the GAA, over the past ten years there has been an almost 100 per cent increase in the number of GAA clubs operating outside of Ireland, with more than 400 now in existence. Many new clubs made up of non-native Irish people who have been drawn to, and inspired by, Gaelic games is proof of the strengthening of these overseas roots.

One player who took part in the GAA World Games is Argentine-born

Bernardo Devereux who vice-captains The Hurling Club in Buenos Aires.

Argentina is a good example of a country outside the English-speaking world that has managed to maintain its strong Irish roots, with an estimated 50,000 Irish leaving for the South American country in the mid-to-late 1800s, the majority settling in the capital. It was there in the late 19th century when the first Gaelic games matches were recorded, with the Argentinian Hurling Federation established in 1920. Back then it looked like the sports were about to flourish in the country however, due to a cut-off in both the supply of equipment such as hurleys and of fresh Irish immigrants around the time of World War II, things came to a sudden halt and Devereux’s club – founded in 1922 – instead began to focus its attention on rugby and hockey. It was not until around six years ago that the club decided to reintroduce Gaelic football and hurling.

Devereux, himself a former hockey and rugby player whose great-uncle was one of the original pre-war hurlers at the club, decided to take up the Irish sports and has not looked back since.

“The composition of the players is mostly native non-Irish, other native Irish descendants, but very few Irish,” he says of the make-up of the team. “GAA is mainly known by Irish descendants and members of Irish institutions. There are many Irish associations around the biggest provinces and towns and there are about 500,000 Irish descendants in Argentina. We are working with a few bilingual schools in every important

PHOTOS: SPORTSFILE

CLOCKWISE FROM FAR LEFT: GAA President Aogán Ó Feargháil speaks at the launch of the 2016 GAA World Games in Croke Park; Léo Blanchamp of France celebrates scoring during the GAA World Games Mens Football Native Cup; New York’s Fiona Gormally in action against Canada Eastern’s Tracey Campbell during the GAA World Games Ladies Football Native Cup in Dublin; Members of the South Africa Gaels ladies team collect their medals in UCD.

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SPORT CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: The ArGAA team that featured at the 2016 GAA World Games; Oman GAA players celebrate their win over South Africa on Day 3; The North America Central hurling team after defeating New York Native on Day 1 of the World Games; Sascha Vornmann of Germany celebrates victory over Oman GAA during Day 1 of the GAA World Games.

town helping to introduce the games.”

Devereux says there are clear signs that Gaelic games will start to grow in Argentina. “It has a future and it is slowly growing. It will continue to need a lot of hard work from us together with the help that has always come from Croke Park,” he says. “Right now we are working not only in Argentina through our ArGAA, but also helping in Chile and Brazil with small groups of people that want to start playing the games.”

Across the world, Gaelic games are also finding their feet in Asia. “I believe that the GAA will continue to expand within the Asian region because we are focusing on the local population and not just dependent on Irish or ‘Western’ participants,” says Asian County Board Chairperson Joe Trolan.

“The fact that we are now in schools, universities, and have GAA as an official sport on the curriculum in Hong Kong are examples of the hard work being done by the clubs and administrators.

Our expansion into the youth teams has given us an excellent foundation to grow the game within Asia.”

A GLOBAL STAGE Bernardo Devereux’s experience of adopting a sport that was once foreign to him is only one of many stories about how players across the globe are developing a love of Gaelic games. It’s these stories that prompted the GAA to float the idea of staging a world games whereby players and clubs – both Irish-born and non-Irish – could come together to celebrate the sport and take

part in a competitive tournament.

“The idea has been around since 2009,” explains Pat Daly, Director of Games Development and Research with the GAA. “We had international units and I felt the time had come to try to do something with them on a combined basis. Traditionally we had Britain, New York, North America and Australia but it was growing exponentially in Asia, the Middle East and Europe and I felt it was time to push things on.”

The Gathering event in 2013 presented the ideal opportunity to stage a tournament and showcase sporting talent across the world. Aer Lingus and Etihad backed the event and sponsored 16 hurling teams to come to Ireland to take part. Based on that success, in 2015 the Middle East County Board decided to stage a similar event which encompassed both Gaelic football and hurling. While there wasn’t an intention to make it an annual event, it was felt that given it was the centenary of 1916 in 2016 it would be appropriate to stage the games in Ireland. Over 250 games were played over the course of one week with the finals taking place in Croke Park and, according to Daly, it was a huge success.

“I’ve never seen such enthusiasm or endeavour for people playing at their

own level in a sport that they might not have even known four or five years ago. It was quite incredible,” he says.

Daly cites the Gaelic final in the ‘natives’ category between France and New York as being particularly interesting given how GAA games have developed in France in recent years. “The development in France is quite intriguing because it happened predominantly in Brittany on the same type of parish basis as we have in Ireland,” he explains. “It’s an incredible story because this has happened organically and credit goes to people in France. We’ve helped it out but they’re the people that have driven it and Gaelic football is now on the school curriculum there, they’re really passionate about promoting it.”

Given the success of this year’s games, the GAA is considering making it a triennial event. But where exactly does the importance lie in developing GAA sports internationally? “I think it’s important,” says Daly. “Number one, it caters for the Irish diaspora. And number two, it highlights what can be done in an international context, how the game can be developed internationally and maintain a lot of what is good about it in terms of community identity. Because that’s very much what it’s grounded in.”

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ARTS

Illustrations from Alé Mercado

Perusing the

Winter Papers

AN ANNUAL ARTS ANTHOLOGY FEATURING FICTION, PHOTOGRAPHY, POETRY AND MORE, WINTER PAPERS OFFERS A GLIMPSE INTO THE DIVERSITY OF IRISH CREATIVITY. IAN MALENEY SPOKE WITH CO-AUTHOR KEVIN BARRY TO DISCOVER MORE ABOUT THIS UNUSUAL COMPENDIUM.

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ARTS

SMITH SAYS

THAT COLLECTING THE WORK TOGETHER LIKE THIS, JUST ONCE A YEAR, PROVIDES A SORT OF SNAPSHOT OF WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE COUNTRY’S CREATIVE MINDS.

Even in this age of e-readers and smartphone screens, there’s an awful lot to be said for a well-fashioned hardback book. This is certainly something believed by Kevin Barry and Olivia Smith, the husband and wife pair behind Winter Papers, Ireland’s finest annual cultural anthology. Now into its second year, Winter Papers collects a diverse spectrum of creative output between its beautiful, handstitched covers.

Over the last decade or so, Barry has been one of Ireland’s most brilliant fiction writers, having won major international acclaim for his work. His first novel, the riotous City of Bohane, won the IMPAC Dublin Prize for Literature, and his latest, Beatlebone, was shortlisted for the prestigious Goldsmith’s Prize. Most of the work in Winter Papers is by writers, artists and creative thinkers who plough a similar furrow to Barry in highlighting the hidden depths and eccentricities of life in modern Ireland. Smith says that collecting the work together like this, just once a year, provides a sort of snapshot of what’s going on in the country’s creative minds. Barry agrees that, right now, there is certainly a lot going on.

“It’s a very good time to do something like this because there’s a sense of a lot of activity around the place,” he says. “There’s a really healthy publishing scene, things like gorse and Banshee and all these things, as well as the wonderful, grandfatherly presence of the Stinging Fly. Every month or so there seems to be a very interesting book or stage show, which is not always the case.”

Smith is the first to admit that there are already plenty of places for Irish writers to get their work published, but says that a year spent in Montreal, scanning the shelves in the venerable Drawn & Quarterly bookshop, provided the inspiration for Winter Papers to be something a bit different from the usual literary journal.

It certainly looks and feels different from anything else published here. Designed

by Cork designer John Foley, Winter Papers is printed on luxuriously thick paper and boasts a vibrant, textured cover.

Among those featured within Winter Papers is veteran filmmaker Bob Quinn

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ARTS

BARRY SAYS:

“IT’S SOMETHING I’M ALWAYS CONSCIOUS OF, NOT BEING FROM DUBLIN, THAT THINGS SHOULD NOT HAVE TOO MUCH OF A DUBLIN FOCUS.” “I think with bookmaking, good design and good materials can really elevate the reading experience,” says Barry. “I’ve noticed it before when I’ve read work from writers before it’s published, seeing it on a printout from a computer. It’s alright, it’s grand, but then when you see it in a book, it lifts it. I think writers really respond to that as well. It’s lovely to see your work laid out in a nice way.”

One of the most striking things about this year’s edition of Winter Papers is the amount of graphic work.

Max Porter supplied a ‘graphic poem’ which had played a part in inspiring his much-acclaimed novel, Grief Is The Thing With Feathers. Gavin Corbett painted his story with, as Barry says, an actual paintbrush. Alé Mercado, a graphic artist based in Kilkenny who has illustrated Barry’s works in the past, submitted a beautifullydrawn short story of his own. These experiments blend with photographs, poems, stories and interviews, blurring the lines between different forms of communication and expression.

“It’s very evident from the way that people are working that different kinds of forms are meeting each other and rubbing up against each other,” says Barry. “There’s a real feeling of flux really. It’s something I’ve noticed in my own work lately when, at the start, you’re asking yourself is this going to be a book or a play or a film or what’s it going to be? And increasingly that seems to be a really hard question to answer. I hate to call it ‘multimedia’, but that’s the way things seem to be going.”

One element which both Smith and Barry are particularly proud of is the book’s many interviews, or what Smith prefers to call simply “conversation.”

These conversations allow them to include people like dancer Oona Doherty, singer Lisa Hannigan or

Winter Papers’ textured cover

filmmaker Bob Quinn in ways that a traditional journal could not.

“I think the interviews are a special focus in some way,” agrees Barry.

“Because it’s a 200-page book, there’s space available. It’s really lovely to be able to put six or seven thousand word interviews down. The piece can really relax at that kind of length.

It’s a lovely languid pace. We really enjoy editing conversations but it’s difficult in some ways. You can’t just run it uninterrupted, you have to get a faithful rendition of the conversation.”

Barry and Smith moved to the village of Ballinafad, Co Sligo in 2007 and have been exploring the area constantly in the decade since. Barry’s last book, Beatlebone, is almost entirely set in the north west, and many of the contributors to Winter Papers are writers and artists working in or writing about that part of the country. Barry mentions Brian Leyden’s essay about the “practical and existential repercussions” of moving from Leitrim to Mayo, while Oliver Farry explores the Art Deco cinema hidden away in Ballymote, Co Sligo. Mayo writers Martin Dyar and Mike McCormack are both represented, as are Connemara artists

Bob Quinn and Louise Manifold. In a publishing world dominated by the capital city, such a deep engagement with rural life is somewhat unusual.

“It’s something I’m always conscious of, not being from Dublin, that things should not have too much of a Dublin focus,” says Barry, himself a Limerick native. “I’d almost say we’re about 80 per cent bogger, which is great. I give out about technology a bit, but it’s great that it’s a complete cottage industry.

It’s great to be able to do it from where we are, literally looking out at the Curlew Mountains in Roscommon.”

Living and working in the countryside has become the norm for Barry and Smith, and they are sure that many other artists, writers and musicians are following in their footsteps and leaving the bigger cities behind. “Artists and creative people, writers, are being priced out of cities,” says Barry. “They’re really struggling now to live in Dublin or London, or Paris or New York, which were the traditional places for young artists and writers to go. You can’t do it now without working completely horrible jobs to make the rent. It comes back to my favourite piece of writing advice, which was from Annie Dillard: keep your overheads low. I have a theory that small cities, country towns, country places are necessarily the future for creative people because you just can’t afford the big smoke any more.”

Barry is philosophical about this change. While it took a little while for his inner urbanite to settle in the dark expanses of rural Sligo, he now recognises both what the countryside has done for his work and what creative people can do for the countryside. “It’s a great way of getting life into rural places that are struggling, to open it up to creative enterprises,” he says.

And while Winter Papers is one example of progress on that front, giving rural lives the exposure and thought they deserve, Barry says there are some pressing issues which are beyond the power of literature to resolve.

“Fix the internet, lads!

That’d be a start.”

BARRY SAYS:

“I THINK WITH BOOKMAKING, GOOD DESIGN AND GOOD MATERIALS CAN REALLY ELEVATE THE READING EXPERIENCE. I’VE NOTICED IT BEFORE, WHEN I’VE READ WORK FROM WRITERS BEFORE IT’S PUBLISHED.”

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WILDLIFE

friend foe?The Elusive Pine Marten or

A ONCE RARE ANIMAL, THE NATIVE PINE MARTEN HAS SPREAD THROUGHOUT IRELAND OVER THE COURSE OF THE LAST 30 YEARS. WHILE THERE HAVE BEEN BENEFITS TO THIS GROWTH, HAS IT BEEN AT THE COST OF THE LOCAL FARMER? ORLA CONNOLLY INVESTIGATES.

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which has been dominating other wildlife in recent years. Thanks to the increase of pine marten in the last 30 years the grey squirrel, a competitor of the native red squirrel, has decreased in population, thus allowing other wildlife to flourish, Fogarty maintains. “We have seen where pine marten have expanded that the invasive grey squirrel has dramatically reduced in areas where the two species are living in the same area, and the coincidence with that is the rise of the red squirrel which, until quite recently, was on the threatened species list,” he counters.

Due to a lack of in-depth research and the inability to adequately tag and monitor animals such as pine marten, there remains a significant amount of ambiguity surrounding their foraging habits and how they interact with other wildlife. However, recent studies carried out in the midlands by the Irish Wildlife Trust indicate that the pine marten primarily feeds from vegetarian sources such as berries and seeds, or even smaller insects like slugs and worms.

“They will take birds from nests if they can get them so they’d be quite opportunistic. So you can imagine if they come across a chicken coop full of chickens, it’s hard for them to resist. They’re a small animal to begin with and they can’t take down anything too big,” Fogarty notes.

For many years the native pine marten existed in small numbers, on the brink of extinction. However, the introduction of a protection order under the various wildlife acts has led to the growth of their numbers and today they can be found in almost every county in Ireland. One of the many reasons for the initial decline of this cat-sized animal was the desire to hunt them for their luxurious fur, which strongly resembles that of mink. Other factors included the destruction of the pine marten’s forest habitat through industrialisation, not to mention their persecution as a potential predator to livestock on farms.

In recent years the pine marten population has been growing significantly in the west of Ireland and with that, a number of theories have surfaced which suggest the pine marten could be damaging and killing local livestock such as lambs and calves.

Whether or not the pine marten could be responsible for the killing of livestock is a topic that has left the agricultural community firmly divided. Many wildlife conservationists argue that, due to the relatively small size of the animal, it would be incapable of severely harming considerably larger livestock such as lambs or calves.“We’ve never seen any evidence that pine marten are responsible for killing livestock, they’re very small animals, they’re about the size of a cat. It’s highly unlikely that they would kill a lamb or a sheep or anything like that.” says Pádraic Fogarty of the Irish Wildlife Trust (IWT).

TAKING A STAND However, fearing that this particular creature will cause damage to the farming community, some sheep farmers are calling for action. While he notes that the problem

PHOTO: PETER GW JONES/FLICKPICPETE/FLICKR (CC BY-ND 2.0)

GROWING THREAT? Yet, some farmers argue that if other predators – such as foxes or dogs – were responsible, it would be apparent from the condition of the killed livestock. “If you go out and a fox has killed a lamb, a fox generally takes the lamb or they cut the head off. With the pine marten the lamb is just lying there, they suck the blood out of the neck. So it has to be a pine marten or mink or something that does that,” explains Gerard Belton, Longford Sheep Representative for the Irish Farmer’s Association (IFA). The local farming community in Longford has experienced numerous attacks on their young livestock and the overwhelming belief among the community is that the growing population of pine marten is responsible. “Now a neighbour not too far away had five lambs killed by a pine marten. Within Longford there has been a good few farmers with lambs killed by pine marten,” says Belton.

Yet Pádraic Fogarty suggests that the pine marten population has actually benefited the Irish countryside by seriously reducing the grey squirrel population

has only become apparent in recent years, Belton fears that the effects of the pine marten on the farming community will be more harshly felt during the next lambing season when there is an abundance of new young livestock and a scarcity of available food sources.

“There is only one solution, that is to get some sort of an estimate of the amount of pine marten we have in the country to see the value of them.

Then a cull if necessary. Not necessarily a wipe out, a cull,” he explains.

Wildlife conservationists understandably are taking a different tack, suggesting that simple security measures, like more restricted netting, would prevent the pine marten from killing farm animals, similar to how farmers guard against fox attacks. Ultimately, Fogarty suggests, these security measures are a minuscule effort that allow the agricultural community to live harmoniously with wildlife. “I suppose the bottom line is that we really need to be able to learn to live with wildlife. Wildlife is really important in our countryside, it’s really important for farming, it’s really important for everybody who enjoys the countryside,” he says. “People calling to have them culled because there’s a problem, is not the solution. Culling animals rarely works, even if you did want to go down that road. It doesn’t help to vilify these creatures, they’re amazing animals, they’re part of our native fauna and we should be celebrating them.”

“RECENT STUDIES CARRIED OUT IN THE MIDLANDS BY THE IRISH WILDLIFE TRUST INDICATE THAT THE PINE MARTEN PRIMARILY FEEDS FROM VEGETARIAN SOURCES SUCH AS BERRIES AND SEEDS, OR EVEN SMALLER INSECTS LIKE SLUGS AND WORMS.”

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Fishani Banda and her daughter Winnie with some of the sweet potatoes they just harvested.

Photo: Jennifer Nolan, Malawi, 2016

Farming During the Worst Crop Failure in a Generation Earlier this year, the President of Malawi declared a state of emergency due to the country’s ongoing drought. Without a reliable rainfall, crops have been unable to thrive and in some areas where Concern Worldwide is working, up to 90% of crops have failed.

The majority of the population rely on rain fed agriculture but 2016 has seen the worst crop failure in a generation. We have been working to help people who have lost their food source but as well as this, we want to prevent farmers from seeing their hard grown crops fail again.

Concern are providing families with the seeds and training to grow their

own drought tolerant sweet potato crops. Fishani (pictured above) has just harvested her first sweet potato crop and was amazed to see such a high yield. Her daughter, Winnie, loves them too but this is because of their great taste!

These sweet potatoes can change the life of a family as they are ideal for withstanding the harsh climate, unlike Malawi’s traditional corn crops. This means there will be more food for the family and due to their short harvest cycles they can be planted twice a year. They are also rich in Vitamin A so help prevent malnutrition, which is a chronic problem in Malawi, particularly among children.

Concern’s Christmas Gifts range is full of amazing gifts that can help families in need around the world at the same time as bringing joy to your friends and family. By choosing one of these gifts you could deliver clean water to a community, help a family grow their own nutritious food or provide a family with a sustainable source of food and income. What other presents can do that?

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Winnie Banda with one of the sweet potatoes her mother has harvested. Photo: Jennifer Nolan, Malawi, 2016

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A New

Dawn for Irish Documentaries THIS YEAR SAW THE RELEASE OF A HOST OF IRISH-MADE FEATURE DOCUMENTARIES THAT MANAGED TO CHALLENGE, EXCITE, ENTERTAIN AND QUESTION. JOSEPH O’CONNOR SPOKE WITH THREE DIRECTORS HELPING REPRESENT A NEW DAWN FOR THE INDUSTRY HERE.

I

f Ireland’s fine storytelling tradition is anything to go by, we should be a dab hand at making documentaries.

But for some reason – apart from a handful of classics such as Peter Lennon’s Rocky Road to Dublin in 1967 – we haven’t quite fulfilled our potential in the genre. While we have managed to put ourselves on the world map when it comes to producing drama, we don’t quite compete in the documentary field. However, that tide may be changing given the standard of non-fiction films emerging here in the past year or two, made possible by a number of bright and talented directors who have a knack for telling stories that people want to hear.

“We are witnessing a really exciting time in Irish documentary-making,” says

James Hickey, CEO of the Irish Film Board. “Ireland has a long and historic tradition of storytelling and I think that inevitably comes into play. When you watch a documentary such as Aoife Kelleher’s Strange Occurrences in a Small Irish Village, this is perfectly clear. Kelleher repositions a narrative about Knock – debunking myths of it as a place solely filled with staunch dogmatic Catholics – by focusing on the compelling human stories within the pious town.”

Such stories are not only grabbing the attention of viewers at home but they are drawing in crowds at cinemas – something unheard of less than a decade ago – and doing the rounds at international film festivals too, from Leipzig to Toronto. As Hickey says, “these documentaries are

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Jack O’Sullivan, who featured in Older Than Ireland

Paul Gartlan, who featured in The Irish Pub

Mary Neary in Strange Occurrences in a Small Irish Village.

Photo: Lindsay Campbell

part of a uniquely Irish tradition where the filmmakers focus the lens on the people behind the stories and myths, so what emerges is an insightful reflection of the times we live in.”

ALEX FEGAN Alex Fegan is quite the unlikely filmmaker.

Having studied law and built a career as a solicitor, he decided to take a six-month break from his job in order to shoot The Irish Pub, a feature-length documentary which he made for next to nothing by travelling the length and breadth of Ireland speaking to publicans and capturing the essence of what the great Irish institution is all about.

“I was just in a pub one day and thought,

Fr Richard Gibbons in Strange Occurrences in a Small Irish Village. Photo: Lindsay Campbell

‘God, aren’t these places so interesting but they’re fading, especially the old ones’,” Fegan recalls. He viewed this project as nothing more than a career break and had planned to distribute the final piece himself. But after uploading a trailer for the film online, he was contacted by Element Pictures who wanted to put it in cinemas on the strength of the two-minute clip. “They said they’d like to see it so I was obviously rushing to fix up a few bits.

I brought it in and they said, ‘yeah, we like it’. If The Irish Pub didn’t get picked up I’d probably be back working in law. I’d probably be a lot more secure but then again, I wouldn’t be enjoying it!”

After being well received upon its release in 2014, Fegan followed up in 2016 with his sophomore documentary feature called

Older Than Ireland, which focuses on 30 of Ireland’s centenarians. “I met a man who was going to his aunt’s 100 year old birthday,” explains Fegan. “I thought it was incredible and I remember saying to my wife, ‘wouldn’t it be interesting to interview 30 people and get their views on how Ireland has changed and how their lives have changed?’ That’s how it came about.”

A striking feature of Fegan’s work is his skill in allowing his subjects to tell the story, something also evident in fellow Irish director Ken Wardrop’s work – who Fegan cites as someone who inspired him – in the wonderful His & Hers and his more recent offering Mom & Me. Likewise, Fegan’s mood pieces are character-driven and he succeeds in artfully tapping into these people’s storytelling skills.

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Paul Kelly films Mattress Mick, Mattress Men

“We were questioning it after Older Than Ireland, what is it about these people, and one of the things we came to a conclusion on was that the Irish are quite philosophical without any of the philosophy,” explains Fegan. “It’s very off the cuff, they just kind of throw things out there and that’s very endearing and engaging. You don’t have to do anything to that. The more you allow people to be themselves, the better; the more you impose yourself on them, the worse. I suppose that discovery was made through trial and error.” While these films might not be ground-breaking in terms of revealing revelations or unlocking hidden mysteries in the way that an investigative piece does, they do play an important role in capturing a poignant portrait of the times we live in.

Fegan’s next project will be quite a departure from his last two offerings, a drama set in a newsroom in the aftermath of a major event. Despite his change in trajectory, Fegan remains passionate about documentary and believes it is important that Irish filmmakers continue to embrace the genre. “These projects are competing against massive Hollywood films,” he says.

“So the question is how important is it to tell Irish stories or to have Irish storytellers make films? I’d argue that it’s extremely important because it’s capturing the culture, it asks questions of ourselves, and hopefully it exposes things about us too.”

AOIFE KELLEHER After studying film and broadcasting at Dublin Institute of Technology and working as a researcher on various television programmes at RTÉ, Swords native Aoife Kelleher decided to make the move into a more academic field and undertook a Master’s in Medieval and Modern Languages at Oxford University.

But her love for filmmaking drew her back behind the lens and after pitching an idea for a TV series about young LGBT people to the national broadcaster, she landed her

Bessie Nolan, who featured in Older Than Ireland

directorial debut working on Growing Up Gay. Further TV work along with an Irish Film Board-funded short called Home brought Kelleher the opportunity to work on One Million Dubliners, her first feature-length documentary released in 2014, a stunningly shot meditation on mortality and, more specifically, Glasnevin Cemetery.

“I’m a Northsider so when the opportunity came to work on a documentary about Glasnevin I was really excited about it,” says Kelleher. “It was a place I had known very well, it’s a who’s who of Irish history and even the working cemetery aspect I found fascinating. There was an opportunity to weave Irish art, music, history and politics in a way that felt very contemporary. The fact, also, that it was about life and death meant you got to speak to people about really big questions – what does it mean to be alive and what happens when we die?

It’s personal and that’s something I love about documentaries.”

Helping the documentary become all the more engaging is the film’s protagonist, Shane MacThomais, a Glasnevin historian who acts as our guide throughout the piece. MacThomais’ fervour and talent for storytelling is a real delight on-screen and his participation is made all the more impactful when we are

told at the credits that he died shortly after the film finished shooting.

One Million Dubliners was a real success for Kelleher, particularly given it was her first feature, and it picked up numerous awards including Best Irish Feature Documentary at the Galway Film Fleadh. It also paved the way for her second feature, Strange Occurrences in a Small Irish Village. Released in 2016, the documentary examines the phenomenon of the Knock shrine and the people and groups involved. Kelleher explains what drew her to the project: “Knock is an Ireland which some people may feel we’re moving away from with the marriage equality referendum and this push towards something a bit more liberal and secular and yet, at the same time, the extent to which Irish identity and Catholic identity are entwined is something that I really wanted to look at.”

The resulting film is an illuminating, thought-provoking one, which again features strong and endearing characters, among them Fr Richard Gibbons, who juggles his work as priest of Knock with his administrative duties at the basilica and shrine. “In some ways with both films it felt like we were capturing a moment,” says Kelleher on the parallels that bind her two films. “With One Million Dubliners so much of it revolved around Shane as

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Four Must-See Recent Irish Hits Mattress Mick on set

Colm Quinn, director of Mattress Men

a central contributor and obviously the tragedy there is that Shane is not around any more. With Knock as well it does feel like Ireland is on the cusp of huge change and again, we had a central contributor, Jim O’Connell, who passed on since the filming. So these are stories and people who will never again be captured on film and in some way it’s anybody’s guess whether stories like that will exist in the next generation.”

With Kelleher among a new breed of documentary makers bringing Irish stories to the big screen, how does she feel these films are being received by the public?

“There’s something about our audience that’s unique in their appetite for looking at Irish stories and taking a moment to consider who we are,” she says. “I think that’s wonderful and it’s great that there’s more of these feature documentaries coming out now. There’s clearly the appetite so it’s great that the work is being done and that it’s being funded.”

Like Fegan, Kelleher has plans to dip her toes in drama in the near future but insists that a new non-fiction project is never too far away. “I’m really interested in moving into drama so I’m developing a few projects with writer friends of mine, but documentary is always going to be on the agenda,” she says.

COLM QUINN Colm Quinn cut his teeth on documentary making while travelling in lesser travelled places such as Liberia, Belarus, Kenya and Kosovo. But it would be through a chance meeting in his hometown of Dublin where

Mattress Mick from Mattress Men

he would discover a story that would form the basis of his first documentary feature.

It’s a tale of harsh economic reality in working class Dublin, as seen through the eyes of local filmmaker Paul Kelly as he seeks to transform his fortunes through his creation, Mattress Mick, the wacky alter ego of mattress seller Michael Flynn.

Quinn explains how it all came about: “It was just a chance meeting with Paul on Pearse Street. We just got chatting. He was outside the shop smoking away and started telling me about his videos, the fact that he had the green screen studio out the back of the shop and I was thinking, ‘this is a bit wild!’ But it was only when he started telling me his own story and essentially what was at stake for him with his Mattress Mick dream, it suddenly felt like ‘God, there could be a story here that could represent something bigger’.”

It was only after investing six months of his time following Kelly’s journey and his efforts to make Mattress Mick a marketing sensation that Quinn was convinced that the story was worth pursuing. Unlike Fegan and Kelleher’s work, Quinn’s Mattress Men takes a ‘fly on the wall’ approach to storytelling. That makes it none the less engaging, however, and it triumphs in balancing the surreal with the heartfelt and delivers an honest narrative about economic hardship, one which undoubtedly resonates with many people across the country.

So, given his filmmaking approach, how did Quinn manage to remain detached from the story throughout the filming process and ensure his presence didn’t interfere with what would unfold? “That’s always the challenge with an observation documentary,” he says. “There’s a funny thing that happens in the first few weeks where the camera becomes part of the ecosystem. It just becomes another player; I’m off in the corner and it doesn’t feel that weird that I happen to be there. It’s really to Paul and Mick’s credit that their levels of honesty were immense from the day it started. It was a gift in that sense.”

In terms of a new dawn of documentarymaking emerging in Ireland, Quinn says he has been impressed by the work of Irish directors such as Ken Wardrop, Richie O’Donnell and Ross Whitaker to name a

HIS & HERS (2009) Ken Wardrop’s documentary explores woman’s relationship with man by visiting moments from the lives of 70 female characters in the Irish Midlands.

THE PIPE (2010) Risteard O’Domhnaill’s film documents the fight between locals and energy giant Shell over a pipeline in Rossport, Co Mayo.

THE QUEEN OF IRELAND (2015) Directed by Conor Horgan, this film focuses on Rory O’Neill, better known as Panti Bliss, in the lead up to the historic referendum on marriage equality for same-sex couples.

BOBBY SANDS: 66 DAYS (2016) Brendan J Byrne’s examination of Bobby Sands, the 1981 hunger striker, is a gripping story of troubled times.

few, but believes that the current golden age of Irish documentaries is more a reflection of what is happening at an international level. “It’s probably paralleling the fact that generally speaking it’s a golden age for documentaries beyond Ireland,” he says.

“The audience for docs now is probably better than it has ever been and with the likes of Netflix there are more possibilities.

The likes of Amy, the Amy Winehouse documentary, did massively well. The new Oasis doc Supersonic, Michael Moore’s activist documentaries, even some of the true crime stuff like Making a Murderer – it has become a lot more mainstream than it once was. Audiences are more open to a story being told in documentary form. I think what’s going on here is probably a parallel to what’s going on everywhere.”

While subjects and themes for compelling documentaries are in no short supply, Quinn says whatever the topic, a good documentary must always be honest. “Something that is truthful, that’s ultimately the be all and end all. If there’s something truthful in a story then it will resonate.”

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Animals for Aid THIS YEAR IRISH CHARITY BÓTHAR CELEBRATED 25 YEARS IN OPERATION. EAR TO THE GROUND CAUGHT UP WITH TWO FARMERS PLAYING A PIVOTAL ROLE IN HELPING THE AGENCY BRING LIVESTOCK TO THE DEVELOPING WORLD. see how appreciative they are of what they get. We have seen animals that have been there down through the years. They have all adjusted very well to the climate because most of them are going to mountainous areas where it wouldn’t be hot. All those people will have at least three to four acres of land, which is more than sufficient to keep their cow and its offspring until they pass on the first calf.”

Passing on the first calf to another family is an important part of the project, which expands its reach right across the country.

Just as important is ensuring good care and maintenance of the animals is carried out.

Bóthar says participating families undergo months of training and preparation before receiving the animals from the agency.

They are trained in areas such as animal nutrition, husbandry and welfare. Bóthar also provides ongoing veterinary support to the families in the field with qualified staff monitoring farmers long after they have received their animals.

HUMBLE BEGINNINGS The maintenance of many of these animals begins in the most unlikely of places.

As part of a farm training programme at the open prisons of Shelton Abbey in Co Wicklow and Loughan House in Co Cavan, inmates rear the calves, goats and other animals donated by farmers. It was another Thomas and another Bóthar advert

PHOTO: SEAN CURTIN/TRUE MEDIA.

I

t was 25 years ago that Thomas Blackburn first stumbled upon the work of aid agency Bóthar. An advert taken in the Limerick Leader relating to the charity’s launch at the Limerick Show caught the dairy farmer’s attention and prompted him to get involved. “I saw the ad and something about it appealed to me,” he recalls. “I thought, ‘if cows are good for me they should be good for other people’, so I decided to look into it.”

Bóthar is an international aid agency that uses livestock in development aid as a means of helping poverty stricken families throughout Africa, Asia and parts of the Balkans and Central America. The agency, which is part of a community of nongovernmental organisations, works with a wide variety of animals including cows, goats, chickens, camels and even bees.

It recently marked its 25th anniversary by delivering over 5,000 animals to impoverished families in Rwanda, enabling 800 widows of the genocide of the mid1990s to receive the gift of income and food producing animals.

Blackburn, who has a dairy farm in Effin, Co Limerick, has been donating a heifer to Bóthar every year since and has travelled with the agency to Rwanda, Cameroon, Albania, Kosovo and Romania, where he has seen first-hand the benefits it brings to those less fortunate. “It’s a pleasure to meet these people,” he says. “You certainly

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ABOVE: Thomas Blackburn helping to load in-calf heifers onto Bóthar’s Flying Ark. Photo: Diarmuid Greene/True Media.

BELOW: Dublin football manager Jim Gavin with Betty, a local Rwandan farmer who benefited from receiving an Irish dairy cow. Photo: Sean Curtin/True Media

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DEVELOPMENT Dave Moloney, CEO of Bóthar with Conal Healy, Governor of Shelton Abbey on the grounds of the open prison in Co Wicklow. Photo: Maxwell Photography

that were instrumental in making it happen.

“It would have started in 2007,” explains Thomas Gregan, a prison officer at Shelton Abbey. “I was eating my breakfast one morning and saw a Bóthar advertisement on the back of a Kellogg’s box, one which they used to run around Christmas time.

I decided to write a letter to them asking if there was anything we could do in conjunction with each other. That was the first point of contact.”

At the time Gregan, who himself has a background in farming, saw an opportunity to utilise the land around the Shelton Abbey estate while providing an opportunity to get inmates involved in meaningful work. Bóthar assessed the grounds and identified what could be an extremely viable partnership. It started out with between 30 and 40 goats but operations have since expanded to include a calf rearing programme whereby dairy

farmers – as part of Bóthar’s spring calf appeal – donate a calf to Shelton Abbey where inmates rear it for approximately 18 months, when the then in-calf heifer is ready to be sent to a needy family in the developing world. The goats have proved to be a huge success too and Gregan – who is now farm manager at the site – says records show that almost 1,200 goats have been quarantined and exported from Shelton Abbey to date. “I never dreamt in a thousand years that it would have developed into such a good partnership,” he says.

Shelton Abbey holds approximately 115 inmates at any one time and out of that around 15 men get to work on the farm all year round. Gregan says they come from all backgrounds; people from inner city Dublin and Cork that would have never stood on a farm before right up to farmers’ sons who are experts in agriculture.

So how do the inmates respond to the work? “There’s a couple of things that I find striking,” says Gregan. “Number one is that it is very meaningful work in that every single day the animals have to be fed and looked after and throughout the year they’ll have to have vaccinations, dosing and things like that. With Bóthar we have a basic five-module animal rearing programme where a vet comes down and explains the reasons behind the work we’re doing. Bóthar themselves come down for one day and explain who they are, what they do and who they’re trying to help.

Where the animals are going is a huge winner for the project. If we were simply doing it for financial gain, as in buying calves, rearing them and selling them on, I don’t know if we’d get the same positive response.”

Like Blackburn, Gregan has had the privilege of travelling to one of the regions where Bóthar operates, visiting Rwanda in April 2015. He says seeing what the animals mean to those receiving them really makes tangible the impact that the agency’s work is having.

“It was special to see it because it really drove home the thinking behind the project; they’re more than just a goat or more than just a calf to these people. They are life-changing and some of these people are very superstitious,” he says. “With many of the genocide widows, they believe that their loved ones passed on this gift to them so there is a huge attachment to them.

Blackburn echoes that sentiment. “To be honest with you, what I gave is nothing compared to what I got back. That’s the way I’ve looked at it. It’s definitely a great experience,” he says. “You know one thing for certain – once the animal leaves Ireland she’s going to a family an awful lot poorer than you have ever been or will ever be.”

Bóthar Ark In October 2016, to mark Bóthar’s 25th anniversary, Dublin football manager and pilot Jim Gavin flew an Airbus A300-600ER aircraft from Shannon Airport, which had a cargo of 37 in-calf heifers, three bulls, 260 pigs, 100 goats, and 5,000 chicks, destined for Rwanda. Also on board was 5,000 doses of bovine semen for the Rwandan Breeding Programme run by Bóthar’s sister agency Heifer International. Jim kept a blog of his travels and it can be seen at www.bothar.ie.

Jim Gavin, Dr Gerardine Mukeshimana, Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources and Aideen O’Leary, Bothar.

PHOTO: SEAN CURTIN/TRUE MEDIA

PHOTO: DIARMUID GREENE/TRUE MEDIA

Jim Gavin with Ciara Ryan, Colm Hickey and Aimee Johnson.

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Customers also receive a free site survey, the removal and disposal of any existing oil tank and full heating system testing after installation. Your LPG is conveniently stored in a tank beside your house and our remote monitoring system means you can rest assured that you’ll never run out of LPG. You’ll enjoy the convenience of our easy monthly payment plans as well. There has been a recent surge in the incidence of theft from residential oil tanks, which has left many owners out of pocket. With Flogas LPG, homeowners have peace of mind that their energy supply is secure and safe from theft.

LPG If your home is not on the natural gas grid, Flogas has a very special offer if you are

INSTANT HEAT IN STYLE For instant heat that’s both stylish and useful, Flogas supplies two very

Flogas offers cost-effective and efficient home heating solutions.

Neven Maguire switched from oil to Flogas LPG for his home

contemporary looking and stylish mobile heaters, the Superser Radiant and Superser Catalytic. In particular, the Superser Catalytic burns without a flame and has lower touch temperatures making it even safer. Both models are fitted with easy guide castors, which allows for trouble-free moving from room to room. They are extremely useful as an instant, economic and portable way to ‘spot-heat’ a room quickly, as many customers find it far cheaper than turning on the central heating for an hour or two. Flogas also provides payment plans to its LPG customers at no extra cost to spread bills over 12 months.

CALL US ANYTIME AND DISCOVER HOW MUCH FLOGAS CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOR THE BETTER. CONTACT CUSTOMER SERVICE ON 041 983 1041 OR VISIT WWW.FLOGAS.IE

Give the Gift of Life this Christmas Supporting Bóthar’s annual Christmas appeal could vastly improve the life and livlihoods of people across the developing world.

This Christmas, if you have a bit to give, please give it.

Support Bóthar’s annual Christmas appeal and send Irish dairy cows to Rwanda to help struggling families.

The impact that Irish dairy cows and goats are having in the field is incredible, and it is all thanks to corporate donations from companies just like yours. Receiving the gift of an Irish dairy cow through Bóthar will be the first time that many of these families will earn an income.

This gift of a food and income producing animal is like receiving the keys to a successful business.

It’s a nervous and yet exciting time for the families who are getting a very special animal – one that can continue to give for many years to come. Irish dairy cows do very well in the developing world, giving about 16-20 litres of milk per day, whereas for example in Rwanda, the local, indigenous cow produces just one litre per day.

By supporting Bóthar’s Christmas appeal, you are helping to lift at least one family out of poverty. There are gift options to suit everyone. If you have a bit to give this Christmas, please give it.

PHONE 1850 82 99 99 WITH YOUR DONATION OR DONATE ONLINE AT WWW.BOTHAR.ORG.

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BOOKS

A DOCTOR’S SWORD

BY BOB JACKSON

The Collins Press, €22.99

Over the course of the Second World War, thousands of Allied soldiers were taken prisoner by the Japanese Imperial Army, kept in prisoner of war camps under often horrific conditions, with daily beatings, meagre rations and back-breaking work the norm.

Mixed up in the middle of that horror was a young RAF medical officer from Cork, Dr Aidan MacCarthy.

Author Bob Jackson first learned of Aidan MacCarthy in 1999, when a customer in The Rendevouz bar in Cork city told him the story of a Corkman who had survived the brutal Japanese POW camps. Also featured in a 2015 documentary of the same name which was produced by Jackson, MacCarthy’s harrowing story unfolds between the pages of A Doctor’s Sword, which expands on MacCarthy’s own memoir to include a more in-depth view of the fascinating story, taking the reader on a journey from an idyllic life in Castletownbere in Co Cork to the large scale evacuation from Dunkirk at the beginning of the war, the horrors of a Japanese prison camp in Nagasaki, and the day the atomic bomb dropped on the coastal city. Highly interesting, engaging, and informative, it’s well worth the read.

FOOD

A TASTE OF HOME: THE BALLYKNOCKEN COOKBOOK CATHERINE FULVIO

Gill Books, €22.99

A Taste of Home sees top chef, food writer and author Catherine Fulvio presenting traditional Irish recipes with her own personal twist. Using fresh ingredients available on her doorstep in Wicklow, she presents step by step guides to a host of tantalising treats, including her ‘to die for’ lemon meringue pie. Dig in!

Something of a national treasure across the Irish Sea for his highly entertaining BBC chatshow, and still remembered in Ireland for his turn as the hyperactive Fr Noel Furlong in Father Ted, Graham Norton has turned his talents to fiction in an engaging tale of love, secrets and loss.

Set in a remote Irish village, Norton’s debut novel Holding tells the story of Duneen’s troubled inhabitants – the overweight Sergeant PJ Collins, unhappily married mother-of-two Brid Riordan who is struggling with an addiction to alcohol, and the elegant Evelyn Ross who has lost her parents and the love of her life, and wonders whether her life has been a total waste. Within this backdrop the plot evolves around the discovery of human remains on an old farm, a case which Sergeant Collins struggles to unravel and, in doing so, unearths decades of anger, resentment, secrets and regret. Touching, sad and darkly humorous at times, the description of Norton as “wasted on television” is quite apt, and its immediate popularity has already seen the purchase of the rights to turn the novel into a TV series by Blueprint Pictures. Deploying his talent for comedy and drama, Norton has delivered an engaging read populated by interesting and three dimensional characters in a study of the complexities and contradictions that make us human.

POLITICS

WHEN IDEAS MATTER: SPEECHES FOR AN ETHICAL REPUBLIC

BY MICHAEL D HIGGINS

Head of Zeus, €21

President Michael D. Higgins has often promoted his vision for an ethical Republic. When Ideas Matter, a compendium of his speeches, urges readers and Irish citizens to consider how we can improve on our past and enjoy positive lives.

Shelf life

HOLDING

BY GRAHAM NORTON

Hodder & Stoughton, €20

CHILDREN

HISTOROPEDIA

BY FATTI AND JOHN BURKE

SPORT

THE BATTLE

BY PAUL O’CONNELL

Gill Books, €24.99

Penguin Ireland, €22-€25

Take a time-travelling trip through Ireland’s past with Historopedia, an exciting new book that leads you through Irish history era by era. Captivating illustrations and fabulous facts can be discovered on every page, teaching young historians about world-changing inventions, mythical figures and much more.

Paul O’Connell’s status with Irish sport is legendary, a larger than life figure who consistently played with passion, vigour and determination. In The Battle, O’Connell takes stock of a long and glittering career, charting his athletic evolution. A fascinating insight into the golden generation of Irish rugby.

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FOOD

Pie House GOLDEN, CRISP, BUTTERY PASTRY WRAPPED AROUND A LUSCIOUS MEAT OR VEGETABLE FILLING IN A SAVOURY SAUCE. PIES REALLY COME INTO THEIR OWN IN THE CHILLY WINTER MONTHS WHEN COMFORT FOOD REIGNS SUPREME.

T

here is something very satisfying about making a pie. It’s slow cooking at its best.

Building layers of flavour into unctuous fillings coupled with the ritual of making the pastry, creating the pie and baking it until you have a honeyed, golden crust.

Then all you need is a glass of something delicious and a big green salad. There is also a good case for serving a meat pie with a big dollop of buttery mash. We’re not here to judge. We’re here to make you happy. Homemade pastry is hard to equal as you can control the quality of the ingredients and use real butter, which gives it an amazing flavour. However some pastries, like filo, are quite time consuming and difficult to prepare. Luckily you can buy good filo pastry quite readily. Even the professional chefs are happy to substitute decent ready-made pastry where necessary. Leaving you all the more time to enjoy having your pies and eating them!

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FOOD

FRESH MUSHROOMS AND SPINACH IN A FILO PASTRY PARCEL • 6 sheets of filo pastry •2 50g mushrooms, sliced •1 50g baby spinach, shredded •3 shallots or 1 medium onion, chopped •S alt and pepper •1 clove of garlic, chopped • Nutmeg, a pinch grated • 50-100ml cream • 50g butter • 50g butter, melted and cooled for brushing the pastry Heat half the butter in a pan until foaming, add the chopped shallots or onion and sauté until transparent, add the garlic and continue to cook without browning, remove from the pan and set aside. Heat more butter and add the sliced mushrooms, cook until golden then add in the spinach and return the onion and garlic to the pan. Continue to cook for 2 minutes then add the nutmeg, salt and pepper, stir well and add cream a little at a time to create a light coating sauce, but not too wet. Turn out the heat, check the seasoning and leave to cool. Place the filo sheets on a damp tea towel. Brush each sheet with melted butter, fold in half to form a square and place a tablespoon of the filling in the centre. Pinch the pastry together to form a parcel.

Brush the outside of the parcels with more melted butter or a little milk. Place on a floured baking tray in a preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until golden.

FILO PIE WITH RICOTTA, BROCCOLI AND WALNUTS • 300g filo pastry (6 sheets) • 400g broccoli florets • 1 large onion, chopped • 2 cloves of garlic, chopped • 2 eggs • 250g firm ricotta • 1tsp salt • 100g walnuts, roughly chopped • 50g grated pecorino or parmesan 1/2 tsp black pepper 1/2 tsp chilli flakes 100g butter, melted

Gently fry the onion in a little melted butter until translucent, add in the chopped garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes until soft but not coloured. Remove from the heat and set aside. In a large pan of salted boiling water cook the trimmed broccoli florets until just tender, drain well and set aside. In a large bowl, mix the ricotta, cheese, beaten eggs, salt and pepper. When well combined and smooth stir in the chopped walnuts, pecorino, chilli flakes, onion and garlic. Finally, add the broccoli and turn gently to coat in the mixture and allow to cool. Lay the filo pastry on a smooth surface and cover with a clean, damp cloth to prevent it from drying. Layer the sheets one at a time onto an oiled, floured pie dish; brush each sheet with the melted butter as you go. Let the pastry overhang the edge of the dish. Retain 1 sheet for finishing the pie. Fill the pie dish with the mixture and gently fold over the top layer of pastry to form a lid. Use the remaining sheet to create a lid and brush the top with the remaining butter. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 20-30 minutes until golden brown.

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FOOD

PUFF PASTRY PORK, SAGE AND APPLE PIE • 300g puff pastry • 500g chump end or stewing pork, diced • 100g lardons of bacon, diced • 1 large Spanish onion, finely diced

• 200g sweet eating apples, peeled and sliced • 5 tbsp olive oil

How to make

• 400ml vegetable, chicken or veal stock

PUFF PASTRY

• 1tbs sage, chopped

To make the flaky pastry for the détrempe/dough 250g plain flour 120ml cool water 30g unsalted butter, plus 1 tbsp 1 tsp sugar 1 tsp salt 1 tsp lemon juice For the beurrage 350g unsalted butter, room temperature 60g plain flour In a mixer with a dough hook, blend the main ingredients at the lowest speed setting. Increase the speed slightly as it comes together and mix until you have a cohesive ball of dough. Tip it out onto a floured work surface and gently shape into a 15cm square. Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge while you make the beurrage.

To make the beurrage, beat the flour into the butter with a wooden spoon. On a sheet of cling film (with enough overlap to wrap) place the butter and flour mix. Using a pallet knife, shape into a 15cm square.

Level the surface as best as you can and wrap the butter completely. Chill in the fridge for an hour.

Remove the dough and butter squares from the fridge, unwrap and place on a well-floured work surface.

Dust your rolling pin with flour and roll the beurrage out to form a rectangle approx. 30cm x 15cm.

Work quickly keeping everything as cool as possible to prevent it sticking or melting. Place the dough rectangle into the centre of the beurrage and fold the beurrage over to enclose it completely. Roll with a well-floured rolling pin to increase the rectangle by one-third then fold in two-thirds and rotate 90 degrees.

Repeat the process twice more then wrap and chill again for 2 hours.

Remove from the fridge and repeat the rolling, folding and rotating process three times. Wrap again and return to the fridge for 2 hours.

On the final stage of the lamination, remove the pastry from the fridge and repeat the process just once then wrap and return to the fridge.

It needs to rest in the fridge for at least one hour before use. Any pastry you don’t need immediately can be frozen and kept for 3-4 months.

• 3 sticks of celery, finely diced

• 1 tsp salt

• 2-3 tbs plain flour

• 50g melted butter

• 1 tsp pepper

Put the flour, salt and pepper into a large bowl, add the diced pork and turn well until coated in the seasoned flour. Heat half of the oil in a deep frying or sauté pan and cook the lardons until crispy, remove from the pan and set aside. Add the onion and celery to the pan and cook until soft, remove and add to the cooked lardons. In the same pan add the remaining oil and batch fry the pork until caremelised on the outside. Return the lardons and vegetable to the pan. Tip in any of the remaining flour and mix to combine. Then pour over the stock and stir well. Bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for an hour until the pork is tender. Add in the sage and apple slices, continue to cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Roll the puff pastry out from a pie lid and trim to size. Pour the pork stew into a deep pie dish, place the pastry lid on the dish and brush with the melted butter or a little milk. Bake in a preheated oven at 180˚C for 30 minutes until golden brown. Serve with steamed greens.

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FOOD How to make

SWEET PASTRY

500g plain flour 375g butter 2 large egg yolks (reserve whites) 20g caster sugar 3 tbs cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

To make the sweet pastry, sieve the flour and add the sugar in a mixing or mixer bowl. Drop in the egg yolks, cream and vanilla extract and stir/mix to combine.

Gradually mix in the butter until well integrated. At this point use your hands to quickly bring the pastry together. The dough should be smooth but not firm so add more cream if necessary. When the pastry is ready divide into 2/3 and 1/3 portions, wrap in cling film or pop into sandwich bags and refrigerate for 1 hour or longer if possible.

MINCEMEAT LOAF • 500g sweet pastry • 1kg mincemeat • 1 tbsp butter, melted

PUFF PASTRY CAKE WITH SPINACH, FETA CHEESE AND BUTTERNUT SQUASH • 450g puff pastry,

• 2tbs olive oil

• 500g butternut squash, peeled and diced

• 50g melted butter

• 500g baby spinach, cooked and drained

• Salt

• 200g feta cheese

• Pinch grated nutmeg • Pepper • 2tbs milk

Preheat the oven to 200°C. Toss the butternut squash in the oil, season with salt and pepper and roast in the oven until just tender, approx 20 mins, then remove from the oven and cool. Roll the pastry out to form two rectangles, one measuring 40cm x 18cm, the other slightly larger.

Crumble a layer of feta onto the smaller pastry sheet leaving a 2cm margin. Season the spinach with nutmeg and pepper then layer over the feta. Add a layer of the cooked butternut squash, then add the remaining feta. Brush the margin of the pastry sheet with milk then place the larger sheet on top to form a lid and press around the edges with the tines of a fork to seal. Bake in a preheated oven 160°C for 30 minutes until golden brown. Serve with green salad.

• 1 tbsp icing sugar or flour 1 egg white, beaten

Prepare a medium loaf tin by brushing with melted butter and dusting with flour or icing sugar. Remove the larger portion from the fridge and create a rectangle of similar proportion to your loaf tin. Roll out the pastry to form a sheet about 4mm thick that will be large enough to line the tin (approx 40cm x 30cm). Press very gently into the corners without breaking – it’s quite a delicate pastry so patch up any holes with trimmings. There should be an overhang of 1-2cm all around. Roll the smaller ball out to make an oblong about 14cm x 9cm. Fill the pastry in the loaf tin with the mincemeat until it reaches the top.

Brush the edge of the pastry with egg white and place on the second oblong to form a lid, pinch the edges together well to completely seal and trim any excess pastry. Use the excess pastry to create stars or other shapes, cover in cling film and set aside. Place the loaf tin in the a pre-heated oven at 180°C and bake for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and upend the loaf onto a baking sheet. With the reserved egg white glaze the top of the loaf and apply the pastry stars then glaze them too. Return to the oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool. Serve with whipped cream.

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How to make

HOT WATER PASTRY

225g plain flour 40g lard (or omit the butter and use 80g lard) 40g butter 100ml water 1 egg 1 tsp salt NOTE This pastry is most commonly associated with raised pies such as pork pies and game pies.

Hot water crust needs to be shaped as soon as it’s made as it begins to harden quite quickly.

It stands up well to heavy fillings and is baked until golden brown all over. Experienced piemakers can work up the raised pie by hand but it’s useful to use a jar or saucepan as a mould.

MINI PIES WITH SALMON, RICOTTA AND CAPERS • 300g hot water crust pastry • 300g salmon, poached • 20g fresh dill, chopped • 250ml cream • 1 egg, yolk and white separated

• 1 lemon, juice and zest • 2 tsp capers • Salt • Salad leaves and caperberries to serve

In a pan heat the cream with the half the dill until reduced by half, add 1tsp of lemon juice and salt to taste. Remove the skin and any bones from the salmon, flake the flesh and mix with the remaining dill, a little lemon zest and salt to taste. Beat the egg yolk into the warm cream then add the salmon and capers. Stir well to combine, test for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Form four pie cases as per the instructions opposite. Fill the cases and brush the edges with beaten egg white and pinch on the lid. Place the pies on a floured baking tray and brush the outside of the pastry with beaten egg white. Sprinkle with a little sea salt and prick the top of the lid with a fork.

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180˚C for 30-40 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool a little before serving with the salad, caperberries and some mayonnaise.

Find a jar or saucepan the approximate size of your pie. Wrap a layer of silicone paper or cling film around the base and outside the jar or saucepan, securing with an elastic band or by tucking it inside the open edge.

Sieve the flour and salt into a large bowl. Crack an egg into the centre and cover with the flour. In a saucepan heat the butter, lard and water until the fats have melted them bring to the boil. Pour over the flour and egg, using a pallet knife to combine the mixture and bring the pastry together. Knead swiftly to form a smooth dough.

Wrap in cling-film and chill for 5-10 minutes. Split the dough into 2/3 and 1/3 portions. The smaller portion will form the lid (wrap in cling film and set aside). Form the larger portion into a ball and roll out to a circle about 5mm thickness. Drape the circle over the base of the jar or saucepan and use your hands to mould it into shape until it reaches the top of the rim of the jar or saucepan. Place uncovered in the fridge to chill for 40-60 minutes. Remove from the fridge and gently ease the pastry case away from the jar or saucepan, then remove the paper lining. Place the pastry case on a baking sheet and fill it. Roll out the lid from the remaining pastry and dampen both the edges of the pie and the lid. Place the lid on top and use your fingers to pinch together and seal forming a crimped edge. Prick the top of the lid with a fork. Halfway through cooking, brush the pie with a little beaten egg or milk to glaze.

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Stylish & Efficient

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Our oil fired range cookers come complete with an A rated energy efficient condensing boiler designed to heat your home.

HEATING SOLUTIONS

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HEATING SOLUTIONS

09/12/2016 14:36

WE DON’T WANT TO SAVE CHILDREN’S LIVES Children’s lives shouldn’t need saving from entirely preventable causes. Every day tens of thousands of children worldwide die needlessly from illnesses such as measles, tetanus and diarrhoea. UNICEF wants you to help prevent these deaths. We believe that one child dying is one too many. We believe in zero and we desperately need your help.

Call 01 878 3000 or visit unicef.ie today to give your support.

Believe in zero.

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Beaded bucket bag, €59.95, Zara

FASHION

Mixed flower full length jacquard dress, €595, L.K. Bennett

Pave ball hoop earring, €19, Accessorize

Black animal embellished sequin maxi dress, €290, House of Fraser

Rose gold peacock feather drop earring, €24, Jenny Packham @ Debenhams

Black floral print cold shoulder maxi dress, €60, River Island

ABOVE: Sparkle ring, €19, Accessorize

One to watch, Ruth Negga Ruth, attending a screening for her yet to be released movie Loving, a historical drama surrounding an interracial marriage in mid 20th century America. The 33-year-old is tipped for an Oscar nomination for her role in the film and Vanity Fair has named her as their one-to-watch in 2017. The Limerick native is not only amazing the world’s press with her talent, she’s also well-known for her red carpet worthy wardrobe.

ABOVE: Floral dress, €38, Next Black beaded boots, €99, Next

Black asymmetric leather high heel shoes, €59.95, Zara

ETHIOPIANIRISH ACTRESS RUTH NEGGA IN A RODARTE SPRING 2017 BLACK OFF THE SHOULDER EMBELLISHED MESH RUFFLE DRESS.

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FASHION Green crystal diamante earrings, €47, Jon Richard @ Debenhams

Dark green flower embellished maxi dress, €277.50, Debut @ Debenhams

Elora Blackberry Dress, €495, L.K. Bennett

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Oscar beauty, Saoirse Ronan Saoirse Ronan looked incredible at the 2016 Oscars in this shimmering emerald green Calvin Klein gown. This is a perfect example of how to sparkle while remaining understated.

ABOVE: Green crystal diamante bracelet, €47, Jon Richard @ Debenhams

Black satin mule, €35, Marks & Spencer

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FASHION

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Sky pearls bracelet, €5.99, Parfois

THE WRAP EFFECT ADDS A PLAYFUL AND TOTALLY WEARABLE TWIST TO THE MOST BASIC WARDROBE STAPLES.

Blue cable knit scarf, €60, Alice Hannah @ Arnotts

Rose gold bracelet, €7.99, Parfois

Blue gathered shirt dress, €158, Jaeger

Norse gold tone watch, €225, Larsson & Jennings @ Harvey Nichols

Beige fur stole, €27.99, Parfois

The Wrap Teal wrap cady top, €643, Rick Owens @ Harvey Nichols Cream ribbed roll neck top, €25, River Island Camel court shoes, €590, Gianvito Rossi @ Brown Thomas

Black slim fit seamed trousers, €43, River Island

Midnight Blue Black long coat, €1720, Preen @ Brown Thomas

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Metal grey watch, €36.99, Parfois

The Wrap Navy satin coat, €655, Tara Jarmon @ Arnotts

Navy blue stretch flat leather boots, €139, Zara

Burgundy tote, €285, All Saints @ Arnotts

The Wrap Wool wrap skirt, €99, Cos Black leather ‘Astelle’ bag, €160, Biba @ House of Fraser

Camel court shoes, €590, Gianvito Rossi @ Brown Thomas Black pointed court, €95, Dune

Mini city bag with split suede flap, €39.95, Zara

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MOTORING

Meet the

Fullback

FIAT’S NEW FULLBACK TAKES THE BEST OF THE MITSUBISHI L200 AND ADDS A LITTLE ITALIAN FLAVOUR. BUT IS IT ANY GOOD? CONOR FORREST TOOK A SPIN TO DISCOVER MORE.

I

f you think that Fiat’s new Fullback is familiar, you’re not wrong. Essentially speaking, it’s an Mitsubishi L200 with a bit of a nose job, a case of what’s known as badge engineering. It’s the first entry from Fiat in the mid-size pickup segment, going head to head with the likes of the Toyota Hilux or the Nissan Navara, as well as the aforementioned L200. I test drove the L200 last year and was really impressed with it, from its handling on the road to its comfort, so I expected great things from the hulking black Fiat that served as my test model for the week.

It didn’t disappoint. Two things in particular impressed me about the Fullback, not counting its muscular and flowing physique, which I found a little

more appealing than the L200. Firstly the acres of space, both inside and out.

It’s a big machine, with a wheelbase of 3 metres and an overall length of 5.3m.

Inside there’s comfortable seating for four adults and a skinny teenager, though it could do with a few more cubbyholes for storage, while the glovebox is a little cramped. Headroom is in abundance – you’d need to be pushing 7 feet to feel claustrophobic. Secondly, the fuel economy. Combined driving (with a less than light foot) resulted in an impressive 41mpg (6.9L/100km), which is by no means terrible for a beast with a kerb weight of 1,860kg and propelled along by a 2.4L diesel engine producing 180hp. If you tend to drive fast and without regard to your fuel spend, expect somewhere in the region of 34.7mpg (9.1L/100km).

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MOTORING

It’s also quite pleasant and refined out on the road, with a comfortable driving position, ergonomic seats and a soundproofed cabin. Measuring 1.8m high you’ve got a nice view of the road, though you’ll experience the usual bouncing on rougher roads and over speed bumps (which softens when carrying a hefty load in the back). The steering wheel is surprisingly responsive and the Fullback doesn’t feel too big even on narrow city streets and car parks, aided by a best in class turning circle of 11.8m – the Skoda Octavia is marginally better at 10.4m. The 2.4L diesel engine is quite lively from the off and when overtaking, though it seems to plateau at certain levels and you may find yourself dropping back a gear for a little extra oomph.

Technology-wise, the Fullback is relatively well equipped, with the test version featuring a rain and dusk sensor, heated front seats (fantastic on cold mornings) and bi-xenon headlights.

The media centre is relatively easy to use, though I found the radio to be a bit fiddly, and includes DAB radio, video playback and USB, HDMI and Bluetooth connectivity, as well as a somewhat basic but simple to operate navigation

The Stats FIAT FULLBACK LX DOUBLECAB ENGINE: 2.4 DIESEL POWER: 180BHP 0-100KM/H: 10.4 SECONDS MAX SPEED: 178KM/H TORQUE: 430NM AT 2,500RPM LOAD CAPACITY: 1,000KG TOWING CAPACITY: 3,100KG FUEL ECONOMY: 41MPG (AS TESTED) PRICE: €35,600

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MOTORING

system. You’ll find the usual controls for the media centre located on the steering wheel, though the instrument panel is only home to information like distance travelled and mileage. Driver’s aids include a rearview camera, cruise control, speed limiter, lane departure warning and active stability control.

TOUGH TERRAIN Given the L200 lurking beneath, the Fullback is fully capable off-road and on the job. Alongside a very capable four wheel drive system accessed via an electronic selector in the cab, the Fullback boasts ground clearance of 205mm and wading depth of 700mm.

It’s also quite the workhorse, with over 4,000kg of total loading capacity and 3,100kg towing capacity. The Fullback is capable of carrying a load of up to 1,000kg in the bed, which measures 1.52m long and just under 0.5m deep, and is easily capable of carting around a standard Euro pallet. My test model featured a hard top with side pop up windows over the rear bed, which did restrict rear visibility somewhat.

You can also opt for the usual full box, a covered rear with sports bar, or a simple soft cover for the bed.

Available only in the doublecab version, the Fullback will be arriving in Irish dealerships in 2017 (as specific as we could get). The entry level SX model, with a 2.4L 150hp manual transmission, will be available at €30,670 (versus the entry level L200 which costs €29,950), and is relatively well equipped as standard, featuring keyless entry, a reduced four wheel drive system, side step and cruise control among others.

However, I’d recommend opting for the LX trim level with the manual gearbox, which begins from €35,600 but adds features including keyless start, a muchneeded rearview camera, the rain and dusk sensor, touchscreen media centre, leather seats and more. An automatic version of the LX will also be available, but expect a bigger price tag and fuel bill.

Given the fact that the Fullback is Fiat’s first foray into this lucrative market, you may be a little hesitant in forking out for one for fear of teething issues. That shouldn’t be an problem however – offering the best of the L200 in terms of the skeleton, space and off-road capabilities, and improving on its brother in terms of styling, the Fullback is by no means a hard choice.

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YOUR TALENT. OUR TALENTO. JOB DONE.

5 3 7 , 8 €1 & VRT T A V .

L EXC

40SOUTH ENERGY

TEN YEARS AGO, ITALIAN BORN MICHELE GRASSI, CAME UP WITH AN INNOVATIVE IDEA TO CONVERT OCEAN WAVES INTO ENERGY. TODAY, HIS GROUNDBREAKING INVENTION IS FINALLY ABOUT TO ENTER THE CLEAN ENERGY MARKET.

THE BEST VAN TO MAKE IT HAPPEN

EVERY TALENTED ENTREPRENEUR CAN COUNT ON THE TALENTO. • LED DAY TIME RUNNING LIGHTS • STEERING WHEEL CONTROLS • ESC WITH HILL HOLDER AND TRACTION+

A PRO LIKE YOU

• RADIO / CD / MP3 / USB / AUX-IN

VISIT YOUR LOCAL FIAT PROFESSIONAL DEALER TODAY OR SEE FIATPROFESSIONAL.IE Fuel consumption figures for the Fiat Professional Talento range in l/100km (mpg): Urban: 8.0 (35.3) – 6.4 (44.1); Extra urban: 6.6 (42.8) – 5.1 (55.4); Combined: 6.9 (40.9) – 5.6 (50.4). CO2 emissions 145g/km – 178g/km. Fuel consumption and CO figures based on standard EU tests for comparative purposes and may not reflect real driving results. Vehicle image is for illustration purposes only and may include options or body paint colours, which incur an additional cost.

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45 MAGAZINE TITLES ▲ 10 EVENTS ▲ 3.6 MILLION REACH

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MOTORING

SKODA KICKS OFF THE

SKODA HAS OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED ITS NEW LARGE SUV, THE KODIAQ.

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fter months of teasing its first large SUV, Skoda launched the brand new Kodiaq in Berlin at the beginning of September. Named after an Alaskan bear and the next step up from the Yeti, the Kodiaq will go head to head against the likes of the Hyundai Santa Fe, the Nissan X-Trail and the VW Tiguan. The only thing that might hold it back is badge snobbery, but given the leaps and bounds made by Skoda in recent years, anyone who gives the Kodiaq a miss because of its badge will undoubtedly be missing out. So who exactly will drive this thing? Everybody, if Skoda has their way – the brand hopes that the seven-seater Kodiaq will appeal as an EAR TO THE GROUND 165

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MOTORING

all-rounder – suitable for business, family and leisure use, alongside those drivers who want to take the less beaten paths.

“With the Skoda Kodiaq, we are striking out in a new direction and opening up new markets,” said CEO Bernhard Maier. “With our first large SUV, we are conquering a new segment.”

Less boxy and more angular than the Yeti, and featuring Skoda’s modern design language, the Kodiaq is quite an eye-catching car, perhaps somewhat reminiscent of the Audi Q5. Measuring 4,697mm long (only 40mm more than the Octavia), 1,882mm wide and 1,676mm in height, the Kodiaq’s interior space is also typical of a Skoda – with plenty of head and legroom and a boot volume of 720L, rising to 2,065L when you fold the rear seats.

Alongside a range of modern driver assistance and safety systems, the Kodiaq’s Simply Clever features offer an added depth – for example, door-edge

protection is deployed automatically when opening the door (in case the kids jump out without regard for what’s nearby). The area view system is a first for the brand, offering views around the car and a virtual view from above. The offroad mode can be selected by simply pressing a button, with the chassis, engine management and brakes adjusting to cope with the terrain.

Five powertrains – two diesel and three petrol – will be available from launch, with a choice of 1.4L and 2.0L, and power output between 123-187bhp. Six-speed manual and six or seven-speed DSG transmissions will be available depending on your choice of engine.

Due to hit the Irish market in March 2017, early indications are that the entry level Kodiaq will be priced from d35,000. If it’s as comfortable to drive as the Yeti, it’ll be well worth the look.

The Stats SKODA KODIAQ 2.0L TDI 4X4 SEVEN-SEATER 0-100 KM/H: 9.8 seconds MAX SPEED: 195 km/h TURNING CIRCLE: 11.6M CO2 Emissions: 142g/km ANNUAL TAX BILL: €390 FUEL EFFICIENCY: 5.4L/100KM (52MPG) 166 EAR TO THE GROUND

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07/12/2016 15:25

DOWN ON THE FARM

PHOTO: MARTINA MCGILLOWAY/ILIVEPHOTOS.COM

The Farrell sisters (L-R) Meighan, Eimear, Shelly and Anna, at the AIB Leinster Camogie Senior Club Final

Down on the Farm

WE CAUGHT UP WITH MEIGHAN FARRELL, STUDENT, PART-TIME FARMER AND ALLIRELAND MEDAL WINNER WITH KILKENNY CAMOGIE, TO LEARN MORE ABOUT LIFE ON THE FAMILY FARM IN THE MARBLE COUNTY. I live at home on the farm, we milk cows here, we have about 80 cows that we’re milking at the moment. My father does all the farm work, my mother works in social services. It’s fairly busy, it takes up a lot of his time. My brother does a little bit for him, but when he’s training he doesn’t really have time. I help him with the calves and other bits for a few months. I have a bit of an interest in it myself. Usually I’m just helping with the calves, feeding them and whenever he has newborns I bottle feed them, little stuff like that. I have three sisters altogether and then a brother. They wouldn’t really be into farming at all.

When I was younger, when I was in school, a lot of my friends lived in estates, and I used to want to live in an estate! But as you get older you just start to appreciate the rural side of things more. It’s ideal,

really, living on a farm – there’s always some sort of a wall you can puck off.

Myself, Shelly and Anna, we won the All-Ireland. We were just heading out the door to meet the bus to head off for the All-Ireland. Dad comes in, grabs us all and tells us we have to go out and move the bull, he was after getting out on the road! So we were fairly delayed, I don’t think our manager was happy with us that morning. She got a few excuses why we were late a few times because we had to bring the cows across, so she was used to it I think, us being late. Winning the All-Ireland was brilliant, absolutely brilliant. We’re so used to watching the boys win everything, we’re after taking over this year – we’re happy to do it! We’re also going fairly well with the club. The four of us are on that team. We’re having a good year! I’ll be starting college camo-

gie now as well so it’s all kind of happening at the same time.

I’m back in college − I’m doing early childhood studies down in WIT. I’m in my last year so I’ll be doing my thesis now.

It’s tough enough, you might be gone three or four nights a week training, and then you’re trying to get a bit of college work in there as well, and then when cows start calving you’re trying to go out after college and try and help a small bit, but it’s tough to fit everything in. But it’s not too bad – when you’re winning you’re happy enough to do that! I’m not really sure though if I’d like to pursue it [farming] for the rest of my life. I don’t really know to be honest. I like helping out, I don’t know if I’d be able to do it myself. Especially picking stones – I’m not really fond of that. Dad says that it’s good for us, but we don’t really believe him!

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