Valerie Guiney

Project Title: People in Dairy: Designing the future farm workplace requirements on Irish dairy Farms.

Overview: Valerie Guiney is a PhD student at Teagasc Moorepark, where she is conducting research on social sustainability in Irish dairy farm workplaces. Her research aims to develop benchmarks for a "socially sustainable workplace" and explore practical strategies for implementing these benchmarks effectively on Irish dairy farms. Another key focus of her work is understanding how Irish dairy farmers adopt and engage with these social sustainability benchmarks to ensure that farm workplaces are not only productive but also attractive and rewarding.

Social sustainability in dairy farming is an under-researched yet increasingly critical area, particularly as the sector faces labour shortages, ongoing dairy expansion, and challenges in attracting and retaining employees. The goal of Valerie's research is to create socially sustainable dairy farms—workplaces that attract people to the industry, promote a healthy work-life balance, enhance quality of life, and support the overall well-being of individuals working on dairy farms.

Beyond improving individual farm operations, Valerie's findings will contribute to knowledge exchange, advisory services, and education, helping to encourage a broader cultural shift towards more socially sustainable farm workplaces. The key benchmarks and strategies developed through her research will guide the Irish dairy industry and inform future research and development in workplace sustainability in dairy farming.

Valerie comes from a farming background in North Kerry, where she was raised on a beef farm surrounded by dairy farms. She graduated with a first class honours BSc in Agricultural Science from University College Cork in 2024. Valerie likes to play badminton with her local club and county and is a big supporter of Kerry GAA/LGFA.

Programme Area: Livestock Systems

Supervisors: Dr. Conor Hogan, Dr.Mary O' Shaughnessy, Dr.Lana Repar and Prof. Joe Bogue

Location: Teagasc Moorepark

Funding Source: Teagasc