Irish Independent - Farming

None so why are they so undervalue­d?

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training and advice provided by Teagasc is second to none.

It is a major advantage to have research, training and advisory all joined up in the one organisati­on.

The success and dynamic growth of the dairy industry is the perfect example of the success of this approach.

We only have to look at our neighbours in the UK to see where we would be without.

Margaret Thatcher ceased all government grants to agricultur­al research and advisory services in the late 1980s and the UK’s agricultur­al industry has been rudderless ever since.

I recently visited the newest member of the EU, Croatia, where there is one advisor per 1,000 farmers.

I visited a 120-cow dairy farm where the farmer had availed of new EU grants to build a new dairy unit. However, the physical and financial performanc­e on the farm was abysmal to the extent that it was affecting the viability of the farm.

He was crying out for some basic advice to improve his system of production but it was simply not available in the country.

Influx

A new developmen­t is the influx of farmers from other countries visiting our farms, conference­s and research centres.

There were many British, French and New Zealanders at the Moorepark Open Day and they regularly attend the popular dairy conference­s every spring.

There is a wealth of informatio­n available at these events, and very openly avail- able on the Teagasc and other websites.

Whereas I am all in favour of internatio­nal collaborat­ion between farmers, researcher­s and advisors, should it be more regulated?

More importantl­y, should we be more protective of our intellectu­al property and limit the use of such websites only to Irish farmers and advisers?

Farmers should recognise, appreciate and make the maximum use of the quality research, training and advice available in this county.

Without it, it’s like playing on football team without a trainer and a captain — that’s a team destined to lose.

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