Farm Business
Advisory messages from the National Fodder and Food Security Committee meeting
An online meeting of the National Fodder and Food Security Committee (NFFSC) took place on Friday, March 29, at the request of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue TD.
29 March 2024
Ongoing farm labour shortage evident again this spring
Spring has definitely sprung on farms across Ireland with lambing and calving in full flow the past few weeks. However, one thing that has been highlighted is the continued lack of availability of labour on farms, Roisin Scully, KT Masters Student, Teagasc Ballinrobe, tells us more.
21 March 2024
Homestead Revival: Profiting from Farmhouse Renovation and Self-Catering Ventures
Host Barry Caslin, Teagasc was joined by Niamh Byrne, Abhainn Ri Farm, Blessington Co. Wicklow and Tomás O’Keeffe, dairy farmer from Tipperary and owner of Suir Valley Cottage.
10 March 2024
Campgrounds & Motorhome Parks: A Land Use Alternative!
Host Barry Caslin, Teagasc, was joined by Con Quill, CEO of the Irish Caravan & Camping Council and Owner of the renowned Blarney Caravan and Camping Park. Con is a member of the ITIC Council.
09 March 2024
Woman Farmer Capital Investment Scheme
The Women Farmer Capital Investment Scheme (WFCIS) opened last year as part of Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS 3). Aíne O'Riordan, B&T Drystock advisor in Macroom, tells us more in this article.
08 March 2024
Team approach is the way forward for farm succession
Succession planning requires the input of all family members as well as advice from experienced professionals to ensure a smooth hand-over and the best outcome for all parties, Bryan Twomey, Teagasc Walsh Scholar, and Kevin Connolly, Teagasc Farm Management specialist explain.
07 March 2024
Preparing for your BISS appointment
Owen Power, Teagasc Farm Management Specialist, has key advice on preparing for your BISS appointment, highlighting some of the common issues to be aware of.
05 March 2024
Will Leased land leave money in your pocket in 2024?
Andy Ryder, Drystock Advisor, Teagasc Westport, discusses the rising costs of leasing land for farming, and takes us through the most important points farmers should consider when evaluating the option.
02 March 2024
Over 23,000 farmers to receive interim ACRES payments
Interim payments under Tranche 1 of the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) are set to reach the bank accounts of 23,709 participants in the coming days.
29 February 2024
Putting a stamp on the family’s dairy with milk vending
Having milked cows in Donegal since the early 1990s, the Porter family have not only grown their dairy farming business from 30 to 450 cows, but they’ve added an element of diversification through the commissioning of a milk vending machine.
18 February 2024
50% of TAMS 3 Tranche 1 applications now approved
Some 4,119 applications to tranche 1 of the Targeted Agriculture Modernisation (TAMS 3) have been approved, figures from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) have shown.
13 February 2024
TAMS 3 approvals climb to over 2,700
Some 2,784 applications to tranche 1 of the Targeted Agriculture Modernisation (TAMS 3) have been approved, figures from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) have shown.
23 January 2024
Why Cash is still King
Cash is the lifeblood of every farm business and cashflow management is critical to success, writes Trevor Dunwoody Teagasc Farm Management Specialist.
09 January 2024
Anaerobic digestion: What does it offer farmers?
Providing feedstock to anaerobic digestion plants could present opportunities to farm businesses, writes Maurice Deasy, Teagasc Athenry, and Ciara Beausang, Teagasc Grange. The anaerobic digestion plant at Teagasc Grange will help identify the best options.
16 December 2023
Schemes update: Final day for ACRES applications and organics closing date approaching
Farmers wishing to apply to either the second tranche of the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) or the Organic Farming Scheme have a tight window to ensure their applications are submitted successfully.
13 December 2023
Agriculture must work to meet skills and labour shortages
Agriculture is one of seven Irish sectors facing skills and labour shortages, Teagasc researcher Marion Beecher told the Teagasc National Dairy Conference, while highlighting the need for the sector to 'work harder' to ensure the correct steps are taken to make farms a more attractive workplace.
07 December 2023
Scheme updates: Balancing payments commence and extension to organics deadline
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has provided updates in regard to scheme balancing payments, the ‘young farmer’ scheme and application deadlines for ACRES and the Organic Farming Scheme over recent days.
06 December 2023
2023 a challenging year, but outlook for 2024 more positive
A new report, by economists at Teagasc, provides the latest estimates of average incomes for various farm types in 2023 and looks ahead to future prospects by forecasting farm incomes in 2024.
28 November 2023
More farmers and their spouses worked off farm in 2022
The final results of the National Farm Survey 2022, representative of 85,000 farms nationally, were published earlier this week and they presented some interesting stats in relation to the uptake of off-farm employment at farm level.
23 November 2023
57% of farms earned less than €20,000 in 2022
Teagasc economists have released the final figures from farm incomes in 2022 based on the Teagasc National Farm Survey (NFS). The results are representative of over 85,000 farms nationally.
22 November 2023
Scheme updates: SIS payments commence and deadline for Unharvested Crop Support Scheme approaches
Over recent days, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has provided updates in regard to the Sheep Improvement Scheme (SIS) payment dates and additional funding being directed to tillage farmers with unharvested cereal crops.
21 November 2023
Teagasc releases indicators of farm technical performance
At its upcoming Agricultural Outlook Conference on Tuesday, 28th November in Ashtown Dublin, Teagasc will release its first estimates for incomes in the major farm systems for 2023, as well as prospects for 2024.
21 November 2023
'Where are the women?'
During the opening and closing of her address to the recent conference on Irish Agriculture and the EU 50 years on, a journey through 50 years of Ireland’s EU membership, EU Commissioner Mairead McGuinness posed the question 'where are the women?'
12 November 2023
Scheme updates: organics, Eco-Scheme payments and soil sampling programme extension
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has provided a number of scheme updates recently. These include the reopening of the Organic Farming Scheme, an update on Eco-Scheme payments and an extension to the Soil Sampling and Analysis Programme application deadline.
01 November 2023
Why pension planning is key in the early stages of your farming career
Securing an income from a pension after retirement from farming can ease money worries and also ease the cash flow burden on the successor by providing the retiring farmer with a guaranteed income source for their later years.
31 October 2023
Is organic farming profitable?
With the reopening of the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS), many farmers are wondering is organic farming profitable. Enda O'Hart tells us more.
30 October 2023
Weather, workload and money: the issues stressing Irish farmers
Emma Dillon, Mary Brennan and Brian Moran, tell us how the National Farm Survey shows how the social sustainability side of agriculture is changing.
27 October 2023
ACRES courses and October tasks for completion
October 2023 has been a busy month to date for agricultural schemes and compliance with deadline dates. Sinéad Devaney, B&T Drystock Advisor, Teagasc Galway/Clare, includes some reminders of these in this article.
26 October 2023
The A to E of successful farm transfer
Traditionally in Ireland, land continuously passes from one generation to the next. This transfer of ownership does not always go smoothly. While there is no magic formula to guarantee the successful transfer of a farm from one generation to the next, major difficulties can be avoided.
26 October 2023
BISS and CRISS payments begin to issue
The commencement of advance payments under the 2023 Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) and Complementary Redistributive Income Support for Sustainability (CRISS) schemes was today announced.
24 October 2023