25 years of development

I have lived in Kildare for the second half of my life. I now own the 100 acres that I inherited, which is the base of my present farming operation. The farm needed a lot of reclamation and improvement at the start and the cost of this had to be carried over subsequent years.

During the last 25 years or so I increased my farmed area to around 400 acres. This was made up of varying combinations of rented (often around 200 acres) and contract farmed (100 acres now for a number of years), as well as the 100 acres owned.

Like many other tillage farmers at the time I moved to winter cereals in the early 80’s and in 1984 I put in place grain drying and storage facilities. As my acreage grew I invested in better and higher capacity machinery. This eventually took me to reversible ploughing and one-pass sowing. This remains the cultivation system I use today.

Problems

One of the main problems I encountered over the years has been land availability and affordability. This may be about to change. Are we really about to witness realism come into land rental prices?

Another ongoing problem has been the fall in product prices, in actual and real terms. We have been the victims of a price cost squeeze for many years now and this is continuously eroding farm margins and profit. Something must change!

Strobilurin resistance was a big setback for winter wheat producers a few years ago. Most farmers felt that these fungicides were uniquely suited to Irish conditions and Irish producers and their loss will have hurt us worst. Product withdrawals, as in seed dressing and other chemicals in the pipeline, will have to be resisted in as much as is practically possible.

And then there are the new problems that continuously come on stream and add to production costs. Examples include difficult weeds such as brome grasses, creeping softgrass, ryegrasses, willowherb, etc. These are becoming more prevalent and are difficult and expensive to control.

Expansion

As was common in the tillage sector I have expanded over the years mainly through renting land. There is still room for expansion but land rental prices will have to be more realistic to enable this to be profitable. To my way of thinking there is little point in producing for tonnage sake unless this is also profitable.

Land base

All the rented land is within a 10 - 12 mile radius of my base in Clane. The land is good quality, easily worked, with some small exceptions. It can all be described as being at varying ends of medium textured.

The home farm is typical North Kildare limestone soils with pH levels from 6.8 to7.3. From my background coming from Co. Wexford, high pH soils were a new phenomenon. I have only spread about 80 tonnes of lime since I came to farm in Kildare 28 years ago and this was all on rented land. This was a real eye opener for a Wexford man.

Cropping policy

For many years now winter wheat has been the backbone of my farming operation. Much of this has been, and is, continuous cropping. However, wild oats are restricting my ability to grow oats in some fields and this is my main ‘break’ crop. As of now I have seen no signs of either of the two soil borne oat viruses, unlike many others in the region.

My usual cropping programme is as follows:

Wheat 200 acres

Winter oats up to 50 acres

Spring barley 30 to 40 acres

The wheat is mainly winter wheat but occasionally some spring wheat will be sown where winter planting was not completed. The mix of crops really depends on autumn sowing conditions.

Production costs

As stated previously we have been victims of the price cost squeeze for many years. For this reason production costs are always in focus and provide an ongoing challenge for every crop manager. Typical input costs for winter wheat are shown in Table 1 below.

Targets

My main target in winter wheat is to keep material costs below €180 per acre. I had witnessed escalating costs in recent years but I have managed to reverse this trend with the help of group purchase and keener management.

My aim is to complete drilling by 15^th October and to finish harvest by 7^th September. I would very much like to be able to tell you that I have target crop margins to aim for but I don’t. Such targets are a function of two variables – yield and price – and neither are totally predictable. But if someone here would give me a guaranteed price I would give target margins.

The following are my five-year yield averages across all my acreage farmed:

Where to from here?

Farming is changing – it has always changed – and it will continue to change. In a decoupled farm support scenario there will be new challenges but also new opportunities. The challenge for all of us is to make sure we farm for profit on every farm and on each individual field.

As farmers we now have many new decisions to face up to. For the coming season we will have to deal with and decide on stacking, fallow ground, REPS, forestry, cross compliance, nitrates, etc. And we will also need to watch a new word for everyday use -- GAEC. This stands for GOOD AGRICULTURAL AND ENVIORNMENTAL CONDITION and will be the basis on how land is to be managed in future, at least for those in receipt of single farm payments.

We must also consider ways to improve our farming operations, like share farming, contract farming, shared machinery, off-farm employment, altered farming practice, etc.

Crop decisions

The type of crops we choose to grow will now, more than ever before, influence profit. I feel we will need to consider premiums as in malting, milling and growing for niche markets, e.g. peas, carrots, naked oats, etc.

I think rotation will be needed to increase yields and we can add value by drying and storing. Energy crops, such as rape for oil and willow, can have a future if they are given the right incentives. Such initiatives should and must be Government led.

Industry services

The priority for the future must be to provide better integration of all services to farming, i.e. advice, research, education, inspectorate, etc. We will continue to need advice but I feel that organised groups of farmers coming together are a very valuable way to help unravel our future. Group discussions help us to make decisions that make profit - help us buy right and sell right.

Young farmers remain the lifeblood of our industry. However, there is very little provision in the new regulations to enable young farmers enter the industry in a satisfactory and meaningful manner.

Improve margins

Achieving satisfactory margins is key to success in farming going forward. In order to help margins we must begin to reverse the drop in product prices. In 1977 I received £75/t for feed grain at 20% moisture. In 2004 many growers received the equivalent price at €96/t.

In order to achieve a turnaround in product prices we, as producers, will have to play our own part. We need to talk to buyers and end users and begin orderly marketing of grain. We need to think of forward selling, contracts, etc. if we are to hold our home markets.

As well as altering our approach to marketing we must also continue to reduce input costs through bulk buying and group discounts.

Farm financial structure

It remains critical that farm finance be put on a sound footing. In the present low interest climate it may be beneficial to restructure and consolidate loans.

Family living expenses will vary depending on the number of children, their educational status, dependent relatives, etc. For some it may be possible to realise a non-productive asset.

If we can achieve a sound financial structure on our farms and improve margins through good advice and research then I believe we will be securing the future for the next generation.

My future

With the current cost of land and a decoupled cheque in my pocket, expansion is not a major objective for me. I intend to spend less and less on machinery and I may be tempted to change the crop mix provided it does not entail major investment. I am prepared to do a little more, acres wise, but not for no return. At this point I see little benefit in having to invest in more expensive machinery and then having to work longer hours and rent more land to justify the expenditure. My objective is to pocket the single farm payment and to add a little to it through farming, which I still enjoy.