The buyer is a company controlled by local businesspeople Karol and Chantelle McElhinney, who have interests in tillage and livestock farming as well as bioenergy and construction.

They paid the Donegal Investment Group €17.425m for the property, which includes 1,290ac of organically farmed land and a 500ac lake at Speenoge, Burt, Co Donegal. This is in line with the guide price published when An Grianán was put on the market just one year ago.

Dairy and vegetable farm

Most of the estate is leased to the Witherow family, who run a 500-cow organic dairy herd on the land. The farm also produces organic vegetables. Savills described An Grianán as “one of Europe’s largest organic farms”.

“No other opportunity of this scale is likely to be presented again in the Irish farming property market, therefore it was no surprise that interest – from various buyer types – was strong,” said agent Pat O’Hagan after concluding the sale.

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An Grianán Estate comes to the market