Dairy
Listen: Early February grazing tips from Grass10
The Teagasc Grass10 team has introduced a new, weekly Grass10 update via podcast format. For this week’s grazing management update, Joseph Dunphy discusses PastureBase data, dry matter percentages, predicted grass growth, and rainfall and soil temperatures.
09 February 2024
Teagasc Walsh Scholar wins prestigious prize from the Royal Irish Academy
Dr William McCarthy from Teagasc has been announced as the winner of the Kathleen Lonsdale RIA Chemistry Prize 2024. This prestigious prize is awarded for outstanding doctoral research in the chemical sciences carried out on the island of Ireland.
09 February 2024
Reduce milking workload in early lactation
Once-a-day (OAD) milking in early lactation can help reduce workload during spring calving.
09 February 2024
Leading the development of more sustainable European livestock production systems
STEP UP is a four year research project funded under Horizon Europe, the EU’s flagship funding programme for research and innovation. The Teagasc-led project aims to support the development of more economically, environmentally and socially sustainable European livestock production systems (ELPS).
08 February 2024
Dairy heifers behind target on a lot of farms
John McCabe, Teagasc – Aurivo Farm Profitability Programme, has seen many bunches of heifers weighed in the past few weeks and their progress is worrying in many cases. 2023 was a hard year on replacement heifers. July was wet and so was the autumn. 2nd cut silage was poor in a lot of cases.
06 February 2024
The priority tasks for setting up the farm for the grazing season
On this week’s episode of the Dairy Edge, dairy advisor Kay O’Connell joins Emma-Louise Coffey to address priority tasks from supporting cow and calf health to setting up the farm for the grazing season of 2024.
05 February 2024
Assess the quantities of grass on your farm now
The average farm cover on your farm is a vital piece of information required to plan your spring feed budget, writes Teagasc Dairy Specialist, Mark Treacy.
05 February 2024
Hedge and Tree Planting Requirements for ACRES Tranche 1
Martina Donnelly, B&T Drystock Adviser, Teagasc Galway/Clare, tells us that many farmers have now begun preparing for their tree and hedge planting options under ACRES, and explains the hedge and tree planting requirements of the scheme.
05 February 2024
CBVs expected for 85,000 mart-traded calves
Following the publication of over 620,000 genotypes last week and ongoing sampling at farm level as part of the National Genotyping Programme (NGP), ICBF expects ~85,000 mart-traded calves to have a Commercial Beef Value (CBV) displayed at the time of sale this year.
03 February 2024
Keeping calves healthy as calf rearing kicks off
In recent years over four hundred thousand calves are traded annually between dairy and beef farmers around the country. With calving in full swing on dairy farms, the coming weeks will see large numbers of calves move between both enterprises. Tommy Cox tells us how to keep calves healthy.
31 January 2024
Farmers urged to prioritise safety at calving
With data from the HSA showing that attacks by a cow with a calf account for a third of all livestock fatalities and cows with calves were involved in more fatal incidents than bulls over the 10-year period of 2014-2023, farmers have been urged to prioritise safety during the busy calving season.
30 January 2024
Does the spring rotation planner actually work for all dairy farm soil types?
Many dairy farmers with a large percentage of heavy soil types question the relevance of the spring rotation planner. Martina Gormley, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, writes on how different targets are required on farms with a heavier soil type.
30 January 2024
Balancing optimum dairy cow intakes and good graze outs in early lactation
Mike Egan joins Emma-Louise Coffey on this week’s Dairy Edge podcast to discuss the balance between achieving optimum dairy cow intakes and good graze outs in early lactation.
29 January 2024
Genotypes of 620,000 cows and heifers published
Last Friday, January 26th, ICBF announced the publication of more than 620,000 genomic results of cows and heifers genotyped during the autumn/winter of 2023 as part of the National Genotyping Programme (NGP).
29 January 2024
Avoid feeding waste milk to calves
Waste milk is milk from cows treated with antibiotics and those with high somatic cell counts. The practice of feeding this waste milk, containing antibiotic residues to pre-weaned calves is not recommended.
27 January 2024
Farmers encouraged to carefully manage their winter-feed requirements
An online meeting of the National Fodder and Food Security Committee (NFFSC) took place Wednesday, 24th January to update members on the livestock fodder and feed situation on farms. Challenges around the availability of straw was also a strong recurring message.
25 January 2024
Mapping the direction of travel of dairy beef systems
An increase in the national dairy herd since milk quota removal in 2015 has changed the dynamic within the Irish beef industry. Animals of dairy origin now account for ~60% of Ireland’s beef throughput.
25 January 2024
Action needed to avoid ‘uphill battle’ on future nitrates derogations
The future of Ireland’s nitrates derogation is dependent on farmers making the right choices and implementing measures to improve water quality, according to Eoghan O’Brien, Teagasc Sustainability Advisor.
25 January 2024
Answering the key questions on the National Genotyping Programme
ICBF is writing to farmers, providing an information booklet, to answer the key and frequently asked questions they may have in relation to the National Genotyping Programme (NGP).
24 January 2024
Beef calves coming earlier in the dairy calving season
Due to the breeding policies in play on dairy farms, beef-sired calves from the dairy herd tended to reach the market in the second half of the spring calving season.
23 January 2024
Views on dairy calf to beef action plan sought
Stakeholders of the beef and dairy sectors gathered in Portlaoise on Thursday, January 18th, for the launch of a 10-point action plan on supporting dairy calf to beef systems in Ireland.
22 January 2024
Lowering the carbon footprint of pasture-based milk production at Solohead
At Solohead Research Farm, we have been investigating the potential for lowering the carbon footprint of pasture-based milk production by implementing best practices. A key focus has been using clover to replace artificial fertiliser nitrogen (N).
19 January 2024
Livestock safety ahead of calving season key focus of HSA campaign
The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) will begin a two week farm safety inspection campaign on Monday, January 22, with a focus on the safe management of livestock during calving season when the risk of injury to farmers increases significantly.
19 January 2024
Stakeholders gather for consultation on dairy calf to beef action plan
Key stakeholders in the dairy and beef sectors will gather in Portlaoise, today, January 18th, for a seminar on dairy calf to beef, and the launch of a consultation process on a draft action plan for the dairy beef industry.
18 January 2024
Converting existing sheds for calf housing
Whether building a new calf shed from scratch or adapting an existing shed for the purpose of housing calves, there are a number of critical factors to consider.
18 January 2024
Transitioning to LESS
With the recent changes to nitrates regulations there are a large number of farmers who will be moving from the traditional splash plate to using Low Emission Slurry Spreading (LESS) for the first time. Francis Quigley, Farm Machinery & Milking Machine Specialist, tells us more.
17 January 2024
Calf rearing: Don’t forget water
Along with milk, concentrates and forage, water plays an important role in the early life nutrition of calves when it comes to the development of the rumen.
17 January 2024
Keeping the milking parlour running during this cold snap
After a well-earned break, the milking parlour is returning to action on many spring-calving dairy farms nationally. Regardless of your milk production system, be it spring or winter milk, keeping the milking parlour operational during this cold spell is key.
16 January 2024
Slurry spreading advice for farmers and slurry contractors
As the slurry spreading season opens across the country over the coming week, Noel Meehan, ASSAP Manager, outlines why it is very important that farmers and agricultural contractors apply slurry very carefully so as to prevent nutrient losses to water.
15 January 2024
CMT for peace of mind post calving
The risks around calving are great, with the management of cubicles and calving boxes of high importance. In this article, Stuart Childs, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, details how early Californian Milk Testing (CMT) will facilitate early identification of mastitis infections.
15 January 2024