‘Dairying at Dusk' evening walk to be held on award-winning farm
A 'Dairying at Dusk' evening farm walk is due to take place next month on a family dairy farm that won the 2024 Teagasc/FBD Environmental Sustainability Award.
John, Maria and Brendan Walsh, the family who are leading the way in running a sustainable dairy farm and will host the farm walk on Tuesday, June 10 at 6:30pm.
The walk has been organised by Teagasc, FBD and Dairygold, and all are welcome to attend. 'Dairying at Dusk', will take place at their family farm at Ballylooby, County Tipperary.
This event will be of interest to the general public, non-farming families as well as farming families.
Award-winning farm
The Walsh's win in the competition was based on four key sustainability pillars. The Walsh's are running a highly efficient and profitable dairy operation.
They have adopted smarter ways to grow grass without compromising on grass yield to feed the cows.
Biodiversity is a long-standing priority on the Walsh farm, dating back generations. Hedges are managed to promote growth and diversity, with whitethorns allowed to flourish every 50 metres.
Pictured at the launch of a Teagasc 'Dairying at Dusk' farm walk on the award winning farm of John and Brendan Walsh, Ballylooby, Cahir, Co Tipperary on 10th June are Dr Tom O'Dwyer, Head of Teagasc Signpost Programme, Nora O'Donovan, Teagasc/Dairygold Demonstration Farm Coordinator, hosts Brendan and John Walsh, Maureen O'Meara, FBD and Donal Mullane, Teagasc Tipperary Regional Manager. Photo O'Gorman Photography.
The risk to water quality has been significantly reduced by reducing the surplus nitrogen on the farm with their surplus nitrogen being almost half the national average.
Speaking in advance of the walk, Brendan and John Walsh said; 'We are looking forward to welcoming the general public to their farm and showing what we and other farmers across the country are doing to improve environmental sustainability.'
'Our message to other farmers is: start small, seek good advice, and don't fear failure.'
Dairying at Dusk
Teagasc Signpost programme and chair of the judging panel, Dr Siobhan Kavanagh, highlighted that the Walsh's success story is not just about awards, but about building a resilient and environmentally responsible future for Irish farming.
'John and Brendan are passionate about making a good living from farming but also looking after the environment. Their story shows that you can farm profitable while also looking after nature.'
Hear the inspiring stories of how the Walshs are looking after nature on their farm while continuing to produce high quality food profitably.
There will be fun games and activities for kids – sustainability corner, Agrikids farm safety workshops.
'Dairying at Dusk' promises to be a family-friendly evening in the great outdoors and everyone is welcome to attend to experience the farm system and enjoy the evening out.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Agriland
9 hours ago
- Agriland
Cow flow and avoiding congestion on roadways during breeding
As the breeding season progresses and oestrus activity hopefully begins to settle down, farmers should look at cow flow and congestion points on roadways. Things are still quite hectic in farmyards at this time of the year due to cows getting handled and served, grass quality proving hard to manage, and many farmers trying to wrap up their first-cut silage. However, having good roadways and ensuring good cow flow in and out of paddocks and to the parlour is crucial for keeping lameness issues at bay, along with high levels of grass utilisation, cow performance, and farm efficiency. Having good cow flow through the grazing infrastructure does make for easier grassland management, as the grazing rotation is easier to implement, leading to a better utilisation of grass, reduced costs, and more milk solids produced. A lot of dairy farms have insufficient roadways in place, which hinders cow flow and affects the herd's movement between paddocks and the milking parlour. As cows are now into their peak milk production and farmers are looking to hold that peak, it is important to have roadways in good condition to limit lameness and maximise production. Around the breeding season, when there is more mounting activity, jumping and mounting on tight and poor condition roadways can lead to lameness or injury which can affect milk production but also impact the cow's chances of going back in-calf. Cow flow A Teagasc study on farm roadway featured 55 farms with herd sizes ranging from 30 to 760 cows. with the participating farms selected based on herd size and geographical location. A roadway quality metric was developed to evaluate the condition of farm roadway, based on the following three variable assessed on each section: Roadway width; Surface condition score (ranging from one, which was inadequate for animal movement, to five, which was optimal); The presence of a congestion point on a roadway. All of this information was compiled to use as an estimate of mean cow flow on each farm, defined as cows moved per minute (CPM). The information gathered can be used to emphasise the importance of farm roadway infrastructure for efficient farm management and animal welfare. The on-farm survey results were as follows: Herd size (cows) <100 100-149 150-199 200-249 >250 Number of herds 11 18 8 5 13 Sample size of roadways (m) 130 260 124 87 292 Length of sections examined (m) 87 129 114 157 185 Mean roadway width (m) 2.97 2.94 3.3 3.6 3.89 Range roadway width (m) 1.7-6 1.2-5 1.8-7.7 2.5-5.3 1.9-10 Roadway width relative to herd size 0.76 0.7 0.69 0.74 0.62 Mean surface condition score 2.46 2.75 2.81 2.64 3.06 Public crossings 10 20 20 4 41 Mean total farm CPM 35.6 36.6 41 43.7 55.4 Results In total, 893 roadway sections on the selected 55 farms were assessed, with many roadway widths being suboptimal for the number of cows on the farm. The study outlined a standard width of 3.5m for a 50-cow herd, with another 0.5m allowed for every additional 50 cows thereafter. The results showed that, on average, roadways were 70% of the recommended width relative to the herd, with only 4% of the roadways being an optimal width for the herd size. Roadway width and surface condition were found to significantly affect the CPM rate, and the common denominator was better cow flow when roadways width and surface were of a good standard. Measured CPM with varying roadway width and surface, with a surface condition index (SCI) ranging from one to five, were as follows: Width (m) SCI 1 SCI 2 SCI 3 SCI 4 SCI 5 1 12.4 13.8 15.2 16.6 21.3 1.5 13.4 15.6 21.5 25.1 32.1 2 14.4 17.4 27.8 33.6 42.9 2.5 15.5 21.2 34 42.2 53.6 3 16.5 25 40.3 50.7 64.4 3.5 17.5 28.8 46.6 59.3 75.2 4 18.5 32.6 52.8 67.8 86 4.5 19.6 36.4 59.1 76.3 96.8 5 20.6 40.2 65.4 84.9 107.6 Public road crossings had a significant negative impact on cow flow, as it was found to reduce CPM by 32.7% on average, whereas congestion points did not have a major impact. The study found that only 14.2% of farm roadways were in an optimal surface condition to allow for sufficient cow movement, with 24.4% being completely inadequate. A number of factors affected surface conditions, including roadway width, congestion points, and the presence of a grass verge. Overall, the study found that roadway infrastructure has not adapted to meet increased herd demands on dairy farms across the country. This is not surprising as since many herds increased in size since the abolishment of quotas in 2015, grazing infrastructure, paddock sizes, and even water troughs did not increase in the same vein. According to the study, it is important that farmers re-assess such factors. It is essential for a farmer to ensure that their roadways are of adequate width, with a good surface condition and fewer congestion points to allow for increased cow throughput. This is particularly important to consider in the coming days and weeks as, more than likely, stock bulls are going to be let out to mop up any repeats or cows yet to be served, and if roadways and cow flow is poor, injuries and costs may sky-rocket.
Sunday World
3 days ago
- Sunday World
Late mafioso John Gotti's grandsons accused of beating up brother-in-law
"He got what was coming to him' Mafia Boss John Gotti, aka 'The Dapper Don; ' is photographed on a street corner January 20, 1987 in New York City. Two grandsons of the late 'Dapper Don' John Gotti have been accused of beating up their brother-in-law. It comes after he allegedly burgled John's home in Queens, New York on Sunday. John (31) and Frank (27) Gotti, grandsons of the late mafioso known as 'Teflon Don', were charged with third-degree attempted assault and harassment after allegedly beating up accused thief Gino Gabrielli. Mafia Boss John Gotti, aka 'The Dapper Don; ' is photographed on a street corner January 20, 1987 in New York City. News in 90 June 4th They appeared before Queens Criminal Court and pleaded not guilty. Gabrielli is the brother of John's wife, Eleanor Gabrielli. It's alleged that Gabrielli was caught on camera breaking into the home his sister shares with husband John, via a bedroom window. He's accused of stealing $3,000, a pair of earrings, a watch, a wallet and a belt. A source told the New York Post he needed 'money for boxing lessons.' He was arrested and charged with second-degree burglary, third-degree grand larceny and third-degree criminal possession of stolen property. He was out on supervised release when the brothers allegedly attacked him. According to the NYPD, when they arrived on scene following a 911 call, they witnessed the men punching Gabrielli in the face. Gerard Marrone, a lawyer for Frank Gotti told the New York Post that Gabrielli 'got what was coming to him.' John Gotti while he was incarcerated in the 1980s, around the time he know Doherty 'You know, this fella, Gino Gabrielli, had some kind of issue, and the brothers went to talk to him, and I don't know, I guess he got a little smart,' he said. 'He should have kept his hands up.' He added that he was not concerned about the charges, and that his client should 'have never even really been arrested.' The brother's grandfather John Gotti was the head of the Gambino crime family before he was convicted of murder and racketeering in 1992. The mobster died in prison aged 61, in 2002. The Gambino crime family have inspired numerous films such as Getting Gotti, Witness to the Mob, Boss of Bosses and Gotti. One of the most successful films of all time, Goodfellas, featured Gambino family made man William 'Billy Batts' Devino, who was killed in a fight with Joe Pesci's character Tommy DeVito.
Agriland
3 days ago
- Agriland
all things tillage with Teagasc's Michael Hennessy
Listen: AgriFocus – all things tillage with Teagasc's Michael Hennessy June 3, 2025 5:00 pm On the latest episode of the AgriFocus podcast, brought to you by Agriland in association with Axa Insurance, Agriland editor Stella Meehan chats to head of Crops Knowledge Transfer Department with Teagasc, Michael Hennessy. They discuss how winter crops, as well as spring-sown cereals, are performing across the country. Hennessy outlines the tasks growers should be undertaking in the coming days and weeks as growth progress is monitored and pests and diseases are controlled. Michael Hennessy, Teagasc The Teagasc representative also explains how world grain markets are looking at the moment and what factors are impacting on returns.
