PJ Pollard - Dairy Sheep
P.J is a dairy sheep producer in Co. Kilkenny. He is currently farming 90 acres, milking 270 sheep while also farming 20 pedigree 
Aubrac cows
He is a cabinet maker by trade but gave that up to take over the family farm 4 years ago. At that time it was a commercial Suckler herd
Motivations
PJ's main motivations included:
- “make something of the family farm and for it to be sustainable”
- He was also farming part time when working as a cabinet maker and the workload was too much so one of them had to go
- He always liked farming and believes it to be a ‘rewarding way of living’, ‘every day is enjoyable’ and ‘a nice family balance life’
- He wanted to make a living from the farm
Success factors:
- Access to land – family farm
- Family support – “still run as a family farm, everyone helps out during busy times”
- Well established company to supply and they also helped out great at the start – Cashel Blue Cheese
Key hurdles:
- “At present no initiatives for farmers to farm full time”
- Income at farm level is very poor at present and if “relying solely on farm it can be hard to meet living expenses”
- No finance made available from the bank, had to finance start up by himself – “if I was to milk dairy cows the bank would have given him any amount of money he wanted but none for milking sheep”
Recommendations:
“Capital should be made more accessible to the young farmer”
- “Make farming more appealing to young people”
- “Farmer has to get far cut of the product”