The Dairy Edge

Latest Episodes:

Let’s Talk Dairy: Recent study of lameness on Irish pasture-based dairy farms Nov 25, 2022

Show notes

To better inform farmers of the principal causes of lameness and more importantly of the steps that they can take in minimising the incidence of the condition, Teagasc, one of the participating members of the Resilience for Dairy programme is hosting three short farmer-friendly webinars.

For this week’s podcast version of the Let’s Talk Dairy webinar series, George Ramsbottom, Teagasc Dairy Specialist was joined by Dr. Natasha Browne, Teagasc Moorepark. Natasha has recently completed her PhD in the area of dairy cattle lameness in Ireland.

She presented the results of her studies and identified some practical measures that farmers can adopt to reduce the incidence of lameness in dairy cows at pasture.

To register for future Let’s Talk Dairy webinars go to:

https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/lets-talk-dairy/

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:

https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

Joe Patton Previews the 2022 National Dairy Conference Nov 21, 2022

Show notes

Joe Patton, Teagasc’s Head of Dairy Knowledge Transfer previews the upcoming Teagasc National Dairy Conferences that are taking place in Cork on December 6th and Mullingar on December 8th.

Joe gives a brief outline of each of the four sessions that will be delivered on the day from a market outline and future demands piece from Co-op representatives and an information piece on the value of high quality dairy products in human nutrition from the Food Safety Authority of Ireland.

The second session will look at chemical N strategies that accompany clover as well as the nutritive values that clover-based diets give livestock as well as discussing the journey towards clover incorporation on their farms with Michael Gowen and Sean O’Donnell.

The third session of the conference will deal with calf housing and welfare as well as beefing up the calf crop coming from the dairy herd with new insights from Alan Twomey as well as farmer experiences from Liam Long and Peter Robinson.

The final session will cover a broad range of topics from finances to SCC to methane mitigation to labour efficiency when milking and the factors that influence this.

Finally Joe reminds people to book in for December 6th or 8th to hear about the subjects in more detail and this can be done by going to the Teagasc website at:

https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/dairy-conference/

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:
https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Let's Talk Dairy: Principal types of lameness Nov 18, 2022

Show notes

For this week’s podcast version of the Let’s Talk Dairy webinar series, George Ramsbottom, Teagasc Dairy Specialist was joined by Ned Dunphy from Waterford Farm Relief Service.

Ned outlined the principal types of lameness in grazing dairy cows and the steps that should be taken to minimise the risks.

To register for future Let’s Talk Dairy webinars go to:

https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/lets-talk-dairy/

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:

https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

The Dairy Farming Experience in Kenya Nov 15, 2022

Show notes

George Ramsbottom, Dairy Specialist in Teagasc Oakpark, joined Stuart Childs on this week’s Dairy Edge podcast to speak about his recent trip to Kenya.

George went out to visit a masters student Michael O’Loughlin who is evaluating the efficiency of the extension programme being run by a charity called Development Pamoja.

George explains how cows in Kenya aren’t large producers mainly driven by lack of availability of water and mediocre quality feed.

George went on to tell of the discussion groups in Kenya also operating as savings groups and how they can borrow money from the group.

The involvement of Development Pamoja charity in terms of providing money has increased their capacity to access funding to develop their farms.

George says that the power and value of extension or advisory services can’t be underestimated with it being clear that those who engaged with their advisory services were making progress in achieving their objectives which in most cases was to simply provide enough for the their own families and to provide food security for their neighbours who in many cases were buying what surplus milk was available to feed their own families.

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:

https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Let's Talk Dairy: Roadway surfaces Nov 11, 2022

Show notes

For this week’s podcast version of the Let’s Talk Dairy webinar series, George Ramsbottom, Teagasc Dairy Specialist is joined by Stuart Childs, Teagasc Dairy Specialist to discuss roadway surfaces.

They also give an overview of a large scale survey of dairy farm roadways from all around the country by Paul Maher, a Masters student working in Teagasc. Poor quality roadways are a major risk factor for lameness.

To register for future Let’s Talk Dairy webinars go to:

https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/lets-talk-dairy/

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:

https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

Nitrates compliance issues for derogation and non-derogation farmers Nov 07, 2022

Show notes

Padraig McCormack, Dairy Advisor in Teagasc Moorepark, joins Stuart Childs on this week’s episode of The Dairy edge podcast to speak about the nitrates compliance issues for farmers both derogation and non-derogation before the end of 2022 and in advance of 2023.

Padraig reminds farmers of their requirements to complete twenty grass covers for the year where necessary and also to get any outstanding lime requirement dealt with as soon as the weather allows before year end.

He also highlights that there are changes coming for those farming under 170kg N/ha that will require them to have soil samples available next year and beyond and how LESS application is becoming a mandatory requirement for farmers under 170 kg N/ha on a phased basis over the next few years.

Finally Padraig encourages farmers to sit down over the next few weeks and months and try and gather what info they can for derogation records for 2022.

This might also afford people the opportunity to organised their paperwork for other aspects of farm management such as profit monitor completion and compiling of info for completing tax accounts for 2022 early in 2023.

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:
https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Let’s Talk Dairy: Maiden Heifer Weight Targets Nov 04, 2022

Show notes

For this week’s podcast version of the Let’s Talk Dairy webinar series, Stuart Childs, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, discusses maiden heifer weight targets to coincide with a new herd weight profile which has been launched recently by ICBF.

To register for future Let’s Talk Dairy webinars go to:

https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/lets-talk-dairy/

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:

https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

Key Learnings from the Heavy Soils Programme Oct 31, 2022

Show notes

Pat Tuohy, Programme Coordinator of the Heavy Soils Programme, joins Stuart Childs on this week’s episode of The Dairy Edge podcast, to speak about the findings from the last ten years that have helped to develop a blueprint for resilient dairy farms on heavy soils across the country.

Pat started by revisiting the wet years of 2009 and 2012 which were the catalyst for the commencement of the programme and explained that while, the initial focus on the programme was on drainage, after the first few years, the levels of soil fertility came to the fore and became a key focus area for all the farms.

As a result of significant improvements made in this area, along with better farm infrastructure, large increases in grass utilisation have been achieved.

Pat says that being good at all aspects of dairy farming from herd genetics and breeding management, as well as the grassland management, is important and that in the reality, the only difference between the heavy soils’ farms and other farms is the soil type and that the way the farmers on the programme manage all aspects of their operation is key to them running profitable operations in spite of their soil type.

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:

https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Let's Talk Dairy: On-Off Grazing Oct 28, 2022

Show notes

For this week’s podcast version of the Let’s Talk Dairy webinar series, Stuart Childs, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, discusses on-off grazing.

On-off grazing is often associated with the springtime but it's also part of the grazing repertoire at this time of the year. If ground conditions are gone tricky, on-off grazing may be the solution.

To register for future Let’s Talk Dairy webinars go to:

https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/lets-talk-dairy/

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:

https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

The funded animal health consultations available to dairy farmers Oct 24, 2022

Show notes

Michelle McGrath, a vet working with Animal Health Ireland, tells Stuart Childs on this week’s Dairy Edge podcast about a number of Department of Agriculture funded animal health consultations that farmers can avail of through their vets.

Michelle says that, for farmers struggling with their bulk SCC, there is an in-lactation consult available to help farmers take the first steps towards getting control of their cell count.

This process involves farm advisors and milking machine technicians as well as the farm vet however, the first step on this journey begins with the initial consult with the vet.

While this is targeted at herds that have SCC problems, if people would like to learn more about being more in control of their SCC, they can also apply. It is important to note though that the deadline for application for this consult is Oct 31st.

On a similar line, Michelle also spoke about the TASAH funded dry cow consult available to help farmers embark on sealer only dry cow strategy to allow them to comply with the new regulations introduced earlier this year.

There are also consults available on Parasite control and Johnes control as well as BVD and TB in the case of breakdowns of either disease on farms.

Finally, Michelle points out that there is a great resource of information on animal health on the Animal Health Ireland website and encourages people to visit it to view articles, videos and lots of other information in relation to the main diseases that affect farmers.

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:

https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected