Cathal Crean

Address: Woodpark, Gorey, Co. Wexford

Farm Size: 113 Ha (90 Ha grassland and 23 Ha tillage)

Soil type: Macamore soil series (Fine loamy drift over calcareous Irish sea tilt) – Heavy soil type and difficult to manage in periods of heavy rain

Farming system: Spring calving calf-to-beef system with tillage enterprise.

Farm plan: To maintain a farm gross margin of €1000/ha. This will be done by focusing on maintaining an output of beef of €1,800/Ha and keeping production costs within 40-45% of this output. Cows calve from January to early April and males are finished as bulls between 18-20 months and heifers are finished at 22 months of age. Cow milk yield is critical for maximising calf weaning weight and therefore the majority of the cows are black Limousin x Holstein/Friesians.

This farm will aim to demonstrate a high output suckling system on heavy land in the south-east.