Farmer writes: adopting new ideas and recalling old ones

“That phone, is worth about three farms to MacDuff”, said a friend of my father’s. Everyone in the round laughed. MacDuff was a farmer and cattle dealer, and had just answered his mobile phone for the third time since we entered Sullivan’s Bar, Kilsheelan, some 15 minutes earlier.

It was Tuesday afternoon and we were on our way back from the mart in Clonmel. Going into Sullivans for a pint was always part of the journey.

The year was 1996 and the cattle dealer was the first man in our area to get one of these new mobile phones, that the rest of us had seen – and quickly dismissed – on the television. He was, and still is, an excellent cattle businessman. It was no coincidence that he took a punt on the new device: he’d seen something the rest of us hadn’t and being the first local dealer to have one, he positioned himself ahead of others who weren’t so easily contactable.

Reputation

By the time these others caught up, MacDuff already had his reputation enhanced. And, more importantly, he had his money made.

The above story came to mind during an agri-industry event in Kilkenny I attended last week. I presented an idea on energy-efficient WiFi networks, which is part of the work I do off-farm for the TSSG, a research group in Waterford Institute of Technology. Using small wind and solar power harvesters to increase broadband in rural areas is another part of this work.

Fellow Farmer Writes columnist, Ciarán Lenehan also presented on the day. His idea for an easier way to measure grass received great interest from the audience.

If MacDuff the cattle dealer was at this event, they’d call him an early adopter. This is someone who’s willing to try a new idea or technology, sometimes before it’s even a finished product. They might not know what exactly this new thing will do for them, but they’re prepared to give it a go. More often than not, it gives their enterprise a real advantage before competitors catch on. By then, the benefit of the new technology is usually lost, and the MacDuffs of this world are looking for the next new idea.

First lambs finally arrive

New ideas mixed with old on the farm this week too. The first lambs born at our place in over 14 years finally arrived. And, typically, two arrived at the same time when two hoggets gave birth within hours of each other.

We’re trying to get into good habits and new ideas, so we’ve recorded various details re the births, such as lambing difficulty, weights, vigour, etc. But the age-old concept of lifting lambs to check for a full belly was also rolled out – after all the new stuff was completed.

Perhaps there’s a balance to be found as we try to be early adopters of new ideas, while not forgetting the simple common sense that has got us this far.

Kieran Sullivan and his brother farm part-time in Co Waterford. You can follow him on Twitter: @kieran_sullivan