The Beef Edge

As the registered farm partnership deadline approaches on 11th February 2022, Teagasc Collaborative Farm specialist, Gordon Peppard, gives an insight into what you need to do to set up a farm partnership, its benefits and implications. At this time of year farmers start considering various farming options in advance of submitting the basic payment in May. Gordon explains that Registered Farm Partn...

With technologies increasing on farms every year, on this week’s episode of the Beef Edge, John Heslin, MSD Animal Health Market Access and Marketing Manager, and part time beef farmer, gives his insights in advance of calving and breeding season. John describes how he farms with his father in Co. Westmeath operating a suckling to store and sometime finishing system. With all family members involv...

Kicking off the first episode of the Beef Edge podcast for 2022, Ronan Delany from Co. Meath gives an insight into his mixed farming system, how he has managed to meet the challenge to reduce age to slaughter and his plans to progress in the year ahead. Ronan buys in 200 heifers per year and finishes the majority from grass at an average of 19.5 months of age. Ronan describes how he buys a variety...

On the final episode of the Beef Edge podcast for 2021, Teagasc Head of Drystock, Pearse Kelly, joins Catherine Egan to look back on the year gone by and to discuss what is expected in the New Year and the outlook for 2022. In many ways, 2021 was a good year on cattle farms and Pearse outlines how beef prices began to rise in the spring and, like the tide that rises all ships, weanling and store p...

For the 100th episode of the Beef Edge podcast, Catherine Egan is joined by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, to find out what beef farmers can expect from the new CAP, to discuss markets for Irish beef abroad and what is in store for the future of the Irish beef sector. The Minister told the Beef Edge that beef farmers will be supported in the next CAP. ‘The core...

With Liver Fluke costing Irish farmers €90million every year, Teagasc Advisor Gary Fisher, joins Catherine Egan on this week’s Beef Edge podcast to give an insight into fluke treatment on farm, when to dose and what products to treat each stage. Liver Fluke is a parasite on many farms and Gary explains that recent high temperatures and the extended grazing season may lead to high fluke levels on f...

Martina Harrington, Teagasc’s specialist and programme manager, gives an insight into the new suckler beef demonstration farm programme on this week’s Beef Edge podcast. Teagasc’s Future Beef programme comprises of a network of 24 demonstration farms positioned right across Ireland. Each farm is representative of their region in farm size, soil type, system, stock numbers etc. The farm size ranges...

Chris Daly from ICBF joins Catherine Egan on this week’s episode of the Beef Edge podcast to explain the new Commercial Beef Value (CBV) which will be launched at the Teagasc Virtual Beef Conference next week on 6th December at 8pm. Chris explains how it is a new tool being made available for farmers buying in cattle and bringing them on to finish to know what the genetic merit is. The euro value...

With fertiliser prices skyrocketing, Teagasc Specialist Mark Plunkett is on this week’s episode of the Beef Edge podcast with an update on the outlook for the coming months and what can you do to maintain margins in light of further possible increases. The current fertiliser price increases are unprecedented and Mark explains why they have risen so dramatically - which have been caused by a number...

With legislative changes around prescription and parasite treatment coming in 2022, on this week’s Beef Edge podcast Catherine Egan is joined by Superintending Veterinary Inspectors Caroline Garvan & Damien Barrett to discuss antimicrobial resistance, future challenges to the beef herd and the upcoming Animal Health Awareness week running from the 18-24th November. For further information visi...

For the third and final part of the ‘Getting Winter Ready’ series, this week’s Beef Edge podcast is focusing on animal housing for the coming months and Catherine Egan is joined by vet & UCD lecturer Catherine McAloon. Firstly, Catherine highlights the importance of space allowance over the winter period to maximise performance. Good ventilation is also critical and Catherine describes the two...

‘Getting Winter Ready’ is a three-part series on the Beef Edge podcast focusing on nutrition, health and housing and for this second part, vet Cara Sheridan with MSD Animal Health discusses how to manage animal health over the winter. Cara highlights the importance of making adjustments to housing, fixing drinkers and ensuring cattle are dosed and vaccinated prior to housing. It is best to try and...

‘Getting Winter Ready’ is a three-part series on the Beef Edge podcast focusing on nutrition, health and housing. For this first part, on this week’s episode Teagasc Advisor John Kelly from county Offaly discusses managing nutrition over the winter to maximise performance. John highlights that there are a combination of factors such as management, diet and housing that impact on performance over t...

In preparation for the last grazing rotation, Thomas Hogan from Nenagh Co. Tipperary, and Grass10 Beef Grassland Farmer of the Year, joins Catherine Egan on this week’s Beef Edge podcast to discuss his beef suckling to store system and his autumn plan. Thomas operates a spring calving system with 70 cows expected to calve down in 2022. Cows are mainly Limousin and Simmental cross and Thomas places...

As part of Ag mental health week, Conor Hammersley, Teagasc PhD Walsh scholar, joins Catherine Egan on this week’s Beef Edge podcast to discuss the findings of his study as part of the ‘On Feirm Ground’ project. Irish male farmers experience some of the highest levels of adverse health outcomes relative to other occupations and Conor highlights how his recent study throws new light on male farmers...

With weanling sales taking place across the country, Teagasc Beef specialist, Aidan Murray, joins Catherine Egan on this week’s episode of the Beef Edge podcast to discuss a number of finishing budgets. As no two farms are the same, Aidan advises that farmers should consider their input costs such as silage quality and concentrates, management of the beef system if it’s short or long, and stocking...

On this week’s episode of the Beef Edge podcast, Newford farm technician Michael Fagan joins Catherine Egan with an update on the farm and performance review of the herd in Athenry. Breeding season started on the 21st April and finished 30th June lasting 10 weeks. With 100% AI used, tail painting and two teasers bulls with chin balls alongside two Moo Heats were used for heat detection. A.I. was c...

Transferring the family farm is so much more than just a simple business transaction and there are a number of complex issues to be addressed. On this week’s episode of the Beef Edge podcast, Teagasc Financial Management Specialist, James McDonnell, joins Catherine Egan with key advice to help farm families through this process and all aspects that need to be considered when writing a succession p...

Teagasc Green Acres programme manager Alan Dillon joins Catherine Egan on this week’s episode of the Beef Edge podcast with an update on the dairy calf to beef programme as well as practical beef management tips for the coming weeks. Alan explains that the main points of focus for farmers in the next 6-8 weeks is building grass as well as having a closing plan and it’s important to start preparing...

With over 34,000 audits taking place on Irish Beef & Sheep farms each year, Emma O’Gorman, Quality Assurance and Origin Green co-ordinator at Bord Bia joins Catherine Egan on this week’s Beef Edge podcast to bust some myths around the audit. Emma describes how it demonstrates to customers that quality beef and lamb are produced sustainably under an accredited Scheme and provide an on-going mea...

In the second of a two-part series looking at a farm to fork enterprise, Jim Ryan, owner of Ryan’s Farm, who operates a premium on-farm butchers alongside is his farm in Kells, Co. Meath joins Catherine Egan on this week’s Beef Edge podcast. Jim describes how he manages the cattle from purchase to finish and gives advice for other farmers who may be considering this career path. Jim discusses how...

In the first of a two part interview finding out about a farm-to-fork enterprise, on this week’s episode of the Beef Edge, Catherine Egan is joined by Jim Ryan of Ryan’s Farm. Jim operates a premium on-farm butchers alongside his farm in Kells Co. Meath and he tells his story of establishing the business back in 2007 and how he has expanded and grown the business ever since. Jim explains that it’s...

With approximately 20% of suckler herds operating an autumn calving system, Teagasc advisor Aisling Molloy has some key tips on this week’s Beef Edge podcast. She discusses why autumn calving is appealing to some farmers and the various different beef systems that autumn calving suits. High quality silage is very important in reducing costs over the winter period in this system and targeting early...

On this week’s episode of the Beef Edge podcast, Teagasc Green Acres participant Aidan Maguire from Co. Meath discusses his beef system and gives an update on his farm. For the past four weeks, drought conditions have made managing grass on the farm very difficult. Aidan describes how he had to feed good quality silage ( 72 DMD) to ensure performance was not impacted. On a recent weighing, calves...

In the second of a two-part series on planning in preparation for weaning, Teagasc Specialist, Aidan Murray, advises how to reduce stress at weaning. Weaning can be a stressful time on farms both for cow and calf and there are many different weaning strategies with benefits to each process, which Aidan describes. As part of the Beef Environmental Efficiency Programme-Sucklers (BEEP-S), farmers may...