02 October 2024

Inaugural Teagasc/FBD Environmental Sustainability Awards

The Teagasc FBD Environmental Sustainability Awards aim to promote environmentally sustainable farming. The awards highlight the progress farmers are making to lighten the load of farming on the environment, while continuing to produce high quality, nutritious food, in a profitable manner. 

The Awards recognise farmers who are operating sustainable, profitable farming systems, whilst incorporating the latest scientific developments and technologies on their farms. These actions are reducing their gaseous emissions (greenhouse gases and ammonia), improving water quality, enhancing biodiversity, and improving soil health and carbon.

At an awards ceremony in Co. Laois on 1st October, John and Brendan Walsh from Ballylooby, Co. Tipperary were announced as the Teagasc / FBD Environmentally Sustainable Farmer of the Year 2024. John and Brendan operate a dairy farm and are are passionate about looking after the environment. Significant progress has been made to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on the farm. They have reduced their chemical Nitrogen (N) use by 48% since 2020, and 87% of their chemical Nitrogen is NBPT protected urea. Trees are planted every year on the farm and hedges are allowed to grow up and out, to maximise their value for biodiversity, but also carbon capture.  The Nitrogen surplus on this farm is 91kg of N/ha, compared to the national average of 159kg N/ha.  A low N surplus significantly reduces the risk of nitrate leaching into waterways on the farm. 

To learn more about John and Brendan Walsh, as well as the other finalists, watch their videos here.

The Teagasc Signpost Programme is one of the nine pillars of the Climate Centre. The programme has a number of objectives, including the integration of research-proven climate and biodiversity solutions at farm level, whilst exploring, and reducing, the barriers to uptake of such solutions.