Dairy
Irish grass-fed cows produce more nutritious milk
Irish grass-fed milk contains more beneficial nutrients than milk from conventional indoor-feeding practices.
01 September 2023
Farmyard development – plan carefully
This time of year is often where plans are put into place for farmyard development. The upcoming winter and following spring are coming back into mind.
28 August 2023
Do perennial ryegrass swards persist on commercial grassland farms?
Maximising pasture intake of dairy cows is a key factor in determining profitability on Irish dairy farms. This is due to the low cost of producing pastures in Ireland where the most expensive aspect of pasture production is often reseeding, which is most recently estimated at €1,100/ha by Teagasc.
22 August 2023
Calculating the breakeven milk price
In any downturn on milk price, some farms may experience cash flow difficulties. In this article, Patrick Gowing explains why it is important for each farm to establish the impact of low milk prices on their farm.
21 August 2023
Top 5 tips for August
Joe Patton, Teagasc Head of Dairy Knowledge Transfer, gives his top five tips for dairy farmers this August.
14 August 2023
Tackling Bovine Respiratory Disease
On this week’s episode of the Dairy Edge, Sarah Higgins, Ruminant and Equine Veterinary Manager with MSD, discusses Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) but in particular Bovine Coronavirus.
08 August 2023
Raising soil water storage capacity to meet new requirements
From December 1st 2023, dairy farmers will be obliged to have capacity to store 21 days’ worth of soiled water. Many farms will need to raise their storage capacity to meet the new requirements. TAMS can help. Tom Fallon, Teagasc Infrastructure Specialist, has some guidelines.
08 August 2023
Communicating farmland biodiversity to intensive dairy discussion groups
Aoife Leader, a Teagasc Walsh Scholar completing her PhD in Agriculture Innovation Support in University College Dublin, joins Cathal and Deirdre to discuss her research into communicating farmland biodiversity to intensive dairy discussion groups on this episode of the Environment Edge Podcast.
07 August 2023
Let's Talk Dairy - an update from the Pallaskenry dairy herd
On this episode of Let's Talk Dairy, which took place on Thursday, July 27th, James Dunne, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, is joined by Derek O'Donoghue, Principal of Salesian Agricultural College, Pallaskenry, who provides an update on the college's dairy herd.
06 August 2023
Taking action to reduce the risk of a TB breakdown in dairy herds
Levels of bovine TB (bTB) have been increasing since 2016. Dairy herds accounted for 35% of TB breakdowns and 58% of TB reactors in 2022. By mid-June 2023, 4.6% of herds had a breakdown in the preceding 12 months, with 25,448 reactors removed in that period.
06 August 2023
Reset the milking timetable to prioritise family time and a better lifestyle
Children’s experience of growing up on a family dairy farm vary. If there are milking and working structures resulting in an early finishing time, the memories are generally very positive. It is unlikely young people will follow a career in dairying if they lose the love of farming along the way.
05 August 2023
Teagasc Walsh Scholar wins International Dairy Federation Award for Early Career Scientists
Davor Daniloski was announced as the winner of the International Dairy Federation (IDF) Professor Pavel Jelen Early Career Scientist Prize for 2023.
05 August 2023
Maximising the return from grass in autumn 2023
Stuart Childs, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, highlights the importance of autumn grassland management to maximise the value of your milk, save silage and keep your cost base lower.
31 July 2023
Milking interval effects on milk yield
Martina Gormley and Noirin McHugh explain how implementing a 16:8 milking interval may be beneficial for dairy farmers to shorten the standard working day, thus bringing benefits to the dairy farmer and employees alike.
31 July 2023
Let's Talk Dairy - Pasture Profit Index
On this episode of Let's Talk Dairy which took place on Thursday, 20 July, James Dunne, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, is joined by Joseph Dunphy from the Grass 10 team with a grass weekly update.
29 July 2023
Are you the Sustainable Grassland Farmer of the Year 2023?
The Sustainable Grassland Farmer of the Year competition aims to promote grassland excellence for all Irish livestock farmers. The competition recognises farmers who are achieving high levels of grass utilisation in a sustainable manner.
27 July 2023
From new entrants to dairying to achieving gold standards in milk production
Located adjacent to Tuam, Co. Galway, the Connelly family – despite only cupping their first cow in 2019 – are excelling in the production of high quality milk.
26 July 2023
The benefits of red clover silage
On this week’s episode of the Dairy Edge podcast, Nicky Byrne, Research Officer in Teagasc Grange, discusses the benefits of red clover silage.
25 July 2023
Get ahead of dairy lameness risks in the coming weeks
Tom Fallon, Teagasc Kildalton, tells us why the August-October period of the grazing season is the critical risk time for lameness in dairy herds and how to mange it.
24 July 2023
Maximising the effective operation of automatic washers for milking equipment
Automatic washers were conceived and installed to reduce labour requirements and save time on farms, which they undoubtedly do. Like any machine, they require regular monitoring and calibration to ensure that they are working correctly.
24 July 2023
Alternative slurry amendments for cattle slurry storage
Agriculture is responsible for 37.5% of national greenhouse gas emissions and 99% of national ammonia emissions. Manure management contributes a substantial proportion of these emissions, 11.7% of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and 78% of agricultural ammonia emissions.
24 July 2023
Relief milking - more than just holiday cover
While many dairy farmers employ someone to complete a number of milkings each week, many others have no ‘set time off’ in the normal week, and possibly only take a week’s holidays in summer and some time in winter.
23 July 2023
Let's Talk Dairy - Key messages from Moorepark '23
On this episode of Let's Talk Dairy which took place on Thursday, 13 July, James Dunne, Teagasc Dairy Specialist is joined by Dr Joe Patton, Head of Dairy Knowledge Transfer Department, Teagasc to give an insight into the key messages from the Moorepark '23 Dairy Open Day which took place on 4 July.
22 July 2023
Signpost Series - Challenges for the dairy industry in the Netherlands
On this episode of the Signpost Series, Mark Gibson, Head of Teagasc Outreach & Innovation Department, was joined by Michel de Haan, Wageningen Livestock Research, and Geert Stevens, Dutch farmer, to discuss the challenges for the dairy sector in the Netherlands.
20 July 2023
Teagasc Fodder Survey July 2023
National situation on target, but 15% of farms have deficits to make-up with second cuts
19 July 2023
Low Stress Movement of Animals with Miriam Parker
In this video Miriam Parker, Livestockwise, discusses the instinctive six strategies for cattle survival and how they can be used to encourage cattle to do what we want in a handling scenario.
19 July 2023
Milk Quality Award winners to host farm walk
Austin and Yvonne Connelly farm with their four daughters, Ava, Anna, Jane and Kate, in Tuam, Co. Galway. Fifth-generation farmers, they are relatively new to dairy farming having made the transition just four years ago.
18 July 2023
Using white clover to reduce nitrogen fertilisation
Reduced nitrogen fertiliser use at farm level will require greater utilisation of white clover in grazing swards in order to maintain herbage production, Brian McCarthy, Deirdre Hennessy and Áine Murray tell us more.
17 July 2023
Let's Talk Dairy - What's involved in the climate advisory programme for dairy farmers?
On this episode of Let's Talk Dairy which took place on Thursday, 6 July, James Dunne, Teagasc Dairy Specialist is joined by Dr George Ramsbottom, Teagasc Signpost Advisory Programme to provide an overview of what's involved in the climate advisory programme for dairy farmers.
17 July 2023
The drainage of grassland peat soils in Ireland
Pat Tuohy, Senior Research officer at Teagasc Moorepark, is on this week’s Dairy Edge podcast to discuss the drainage status of grassland peat soils in Ireland.
15 July 2023