Articles
Part one: Thinning of high-yielding Sitka spruce – an overview and results
Part one: Thinning of high-yielding Sitka spruce – an overview and results In part one of a two part series, Dr Niall Farrelly, Teagasc Forestry Development Department, discusses the importance of timely thinning practices for Sitka spruce. There are over 140,000 hectares of Sitka spruce in private sector forests in Ireland. Performance […]
15 November 2024
Lowering Feed Cost: Picking the Low-Hanging ‘FCE’ Fruit
Lowering Feed Cost: Picking the Low-Hanging ‘FCE’ Fruit Gerard McCutcheon, Michael McKeon, and Laura Boyle, discussed strategies to enhance feed conversion efficiency to improve cost competitiveness, focusing on health, feed access, and minimizing stress at mixing, at the recent Teagasc Pig Farmers’ Conference. One of the four pillars of sustainability is financial […]
15 November 2024
Teagasc unveils winners of Research and Innovation photo competition 2024
Teagasc unveils winners of Research and Innovation photo competition 2024 An image titled ‘The Irish green’ was officially announced as the overall winner of Teagasc’s Vision of Research and Innovation photography competition at an event in Oak Park House, Carlow on Wednesday, 13 November. The aim of the competition is to identify […]
15 November 2024
Bluetongue: What are the risks for Irish cattle farmers?
Bluetongue: What are the risks for Irish cattle farmers? Although no cases of bluetongue have been detected in Ireland, Beef Specialist at Teagasc, Catherine Egan reminds us that Irish cattle and sheep remain at high risk from the disease. Bluetongue is a serious disease of cattle, sheep, goats and camelids. It is […]
14 November 2024
Invest wisely and the loss of an industry great
Invest wisely and the loss of an industry great Michael Hennessy, Head of Crops Knowledge Transfer, reminds farmers to focus their investments in areas where there is a clear payback. Michael also provides a fitting tribute to Jim O’Mahony, a stalwart of the industry whose innovations still form a key pillar of […]
14 November 2024
Disease control in oilseed rape
Disease control in oilseed rape Winter oilseed rape has grown strongly over the past month, but these conditions are also good for foliar disease development. Dr Stephen Kildea joins the Tillage Edge this week to talk about disease levels in oilseed rape and if control is necessary. He encourages all growers to […]
14 November 2024
A place for meat and dairy protein in a sustainable diet?
A place for meat and dairy protein in a sustainable diet? Detractors of livestock production systems often cite meat and dairy’s carbon footprint as a justification for their exclusion from human diets. The nutritional consequences of this, however, were explored at the recent Sustainability in Agriculture: The Science and Evidence Conference. Presenting […]
14 November 2024
The importance of Green Education: Insights from the Europea Seminar 2024
The importance of Green Education: Insights from the Europea Seminar 2024 Teagasc Education staff attended the recent Europea 2024 course and seminar in Sopron, Hungary, which provided constructive insights into the state of green education across Europe, Graham Fallon, College Technician at the Teagasc College of Amenity Horticulture, tells us more. Held […]
14 November 2024
Higher levels of liver fluke in factory cattle
Higher levels of liver fluke in factory cattle Animal Health Ireland’s (AHI’s) Beef HealthCheck Programme has identified an increase in the level of liver fluke being witnessed in cattle sent to beef processing plants this year. As presented in the autumn edition of the Beef HealthCheck Newsletter, Programme Manager, Dr Natascha Meunier […]
13 November 2024
Close to 40% of sheep farming households considered vulnerable last year
Close to 40% of sheep farming households considered vulnerable last year A significant fall in family farm income in 2023 pushed more sheep farming households into a position of vulnerability, the recently published National Farm Survey (NFS) Sustainability Report 2023 has revealed. Published by the Agricultural Economics and Farm Surveys Department at […]
13 November 2024