Charles Clarke farms just outside Bailieborough, Co Cavan. The farm has developed considerably over the past eight years, with recent land purchases and a significant land improvement programme. Charles operates a total area of 85ha, 54ha of which is owned with the remainder rented. The grazing platform amounts to 40ha, some of which is hilly and requires drainage, typical of land type in the area.

Outside blocks, both owned and rented, are used to rear replacement heifers and provide silage for the herd during the winter months.

Charles was a keen Gaelic footballer in the past and more recently has taken part in underage coaching.

He attended Ballyhaise Agricultural College in the early 1990s, is married to Claire, a local primary school teacher, and they have two young children, Ellie and Louise.

When Charles finished college and returned to the farm in the early 1990s, he farmed in partnership with his father, milking 25 cows.

His father retired in 2006 and Charles then took over the full running of the farm.

Cows

Charles and his family have steadily built up the herd to its current level of 110 Holstein/Friesian cows.

The breeding policy is focused on producing high EBI cows with high milk solids and good fertility.

The aim is to breed cows that suit their specific system which requires strong, robust animals that can graze well and return to calve within a year.

Currently, 90% of the herd calves in early spring with calving currently under way. Last year, the farm sold 5,300 litres per cow to Lakeland Dairies and the performance in terms of solids was 4.19% fat and 3.45% protein, a total of 417kg of milk solids per cow.

Charles sets out to calve 100% of the cows in spring, but with only an six-unit parlour, this is proving a challenge.

When cows are at peak production, over six hours per day can be spent in the parlour alone, restricting the time Charles can spend on other things, including his young family, financial budgeting and grassland measurement.

Farm buildings

The farm has invested steadily in buildings over the last seven years. In the past, he has taken advantage of any capital grant schemes available to help fund building work.

A new silage slab complete with effluent collection was built in 2007. In 2008, a cubicle shed for 110 cows was constructed close to the parlour with feed space for all cows.

Slurry storage is provided by an underground tank, which was also built in 2008. Charles has earmarked the parlour as the next big area for development on the farm.

He has looked at extending the existing parlour, but given its current position and the associated cost involved with any extension, Charles feels a new greenfield location would be better value for such a long-term investment.

Grazing platform

Providing the herd with good-quality grass and having the grazing infrastructure to utilise that grass are key areas for Charles.

He feels the best investment he has made to date is in land improvement and reseeding.

He has recently finished draining and reseeding two large fields.

Over the last six years, Charles estimates €45,000 has been spent on drainage, fencing, new roadways and water supply to paddocks.

Half of the 40ha grazing platform has been purchased piece by piece over the same time frame, and while all of this purchased land needed reseeding, some of it also required major improvements in drainage and other areas.

The majority of this work has now been completed and as a result, Charles hopes to increase the stocking rate on the grazing platform this year with the addition of 10 more cows.

Dairylink plan

Charles is in a position similar to many other dairy farmers today. He has significant financial borrowings, but can see that major investment is still needed on his farm.

He has specifically identified a new milking parlour as a priority to reduce workload and improve efficiency, and to reduce stress on both himself and the cows.

However, any plans must be kept in context with current financial pressures as a result of the depressed milk price.

At present, Charles is benefitting from his past investment in the grazing infrastructure and reseeding as this is keeping his cost base low and therefore allowing him to survive the current squeeze on his profit margins.

However, in conjunction with the Dairylink programme, Charles plans to learn the skills of grass measurement and financial budgeting to improve grass utilisation and undertake cashflow forecasting.

These skills will be essential as stocking rate increases and more on-farm investment is made.

The Dairylink project will provide a basis for all the farmers involved to monitor monthly farm cashflow in order to help them budget for the peaks and troughs that will naturally occur throughout the year on their farms.

In Charles’s case, this will help him budget to ensure that sufficient funds are available to service loans and farm operating expenses on a monthly basis.

Farm facts

The system

95 spring-calving and 15 autumn-calving cows in the herd. 5,300 litres per cow sold to Lakeland, averaging 4.19% butterfat and 3.45% protein. Breeding goals geared towards high EBI cows with high milk solids and fertility.

Farm development plan

Keen to develop a herd capable of utilising grazed grass. Monitoring grass growth will become part of the 2015 plan. In 2014, the cows produced 3,500 litres from grazed grass alone and the aim is to increase this with a higher stocking rate on the platform and an end to autumn calving.

Farm investment

Significant financial investment over the last seven years, including land purchase and farm buildings. Future development will be on the milking parlour. Currently, all investment plans are on hold to withstand the downturn in milk price. Investment in farm machinery is kept to a minimum on the farm.

Work routine

Casual labour employed at peak times and for relief milking. The agricultural contractor will do all silage-making and some slurry spreading.