Tom and Moya Power from Cappagh, Co Waterford, were crowned overall winners in the NDC/Kerrygold Quality Milk Award 2016. They took the overall QMA mantle from 2016 winners Kieran O’Sullivan and family from Goleen in West Cork.
Tom and Moya Power from Cappagh, Co Waterford, were crowned overall winners in the NDC/Kerrygold Quality Milk Award 2016. They took the overall QMA mantle from 2016 winners Kieran O’Sullivan and family from Goleen in West Cork.
The Power success story offers great hope to those struggling to manage somatic cell count. In September 2008 as Tom returned home from a holiday abroad he took a phone call from his local vet explaining to him that he had way too many cows with high cell count. It took this phone call for Tom to realise the problem he had in his herd on somatic cell count.
“This was the light bulb moment in my career in terms of managing cell count,” Tom said. “At that time, in September 2008, over 80% of the herd were delivering milk with a somatic cell count (SCC) well over 150,000 cells/ml. If I was to compare that barometer again eight years later a little over 10% of a herd would deliver milk over 150,000 SCC. Also, it is worth remembering that the herd is almost twice the size now as we are milking over 200 cows compared to 120 back in 2008.”
From that day onwards Tom placed great emphasis on individual milk recording to try and individually sort somatic cell count issues one by one.
Other topics discussed at the farm walk today included residues and milk quality issues, carbon navigators, farm emissions, farm progression and labour.
Succession
The spring calving dairy farm which currently milks 234 cows using a 20-unit parlour, was transferred to Tom by his father Jim, in 2001.
Jim, who transferred the farm to his son Tom when he was just 26, told the crowd about the importance of allowing the younger generation to take over the home farm.
“I was 25 when I took over the farm. I said to myself, if I could do it when I was 25, I’m sure Tom could do it when he was 26. And he is far more educated than I was,” Jim said.
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