Listen: farming like royalty

The day the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (aka William and Kate) visited Teagasc Grange, will be remembered in Irish agriculture for a long time to come. But if you blinked, you might have missed it.

The world’s media descended upon the farmyard at Grange in two buses, just 40 minutes before the arrival of their Royal Highnesses.

A third bus pulled up, to deposit the Teagasc board members and other dignitaries, before the buses pulled away out of sight.

If the sudden increase in crowd numbers bothered the Derrypatrick herd, they didn’t show it.

Calves in the field continued to suckle their mothers and three cows that had conveniently all calved down with twins, were fenced into a little paddock by the yard to show the royal couple when they arrived.

A helicopter flying overhead was the first hint that the special visitors were due imminently. The gardaí in the yard and in the fields gave the signal to the relevant marshals, and everyone gathered themselves together to put their best foot forward.

A fleet of at least 12 vehicles turned in the gate and powered down the tree-lined avenue at a substantial pace for a farm lane.

With the sun beating down and high spirits in the air, for all the world we could have been standing at the Grange open day in the middle of summer

Considering the volume of rain that fell in February, it was hard to fathom how this convoy of black vehicles kicked up so much dust on 4 March.

With the sun beating down and high spirits in the air, for all the world we could have been standing at the Grange open day in the middle of summer.

The Range Rover pulled up and there was a moment’s pause while people (security, ladies in waiting etc) jumped out of the other vehicles to assume their positions before the doors were opened. William and Kate, rocking their best country chic, bounded out to shake hands with the assembled row of people, including Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed and chair of Teagasc Liam Herlihy.

A woman subtly hidden behind the row, introduced them to each one as they said hello to everyone in the line. They were then introduced to Teagasc beef researchers Paul Crosson and Edward O’Riordan who would give them the guided tour.

Despite the presence of all the reporters, the reality is that no one but Paul and Edward know what was said during the walk and talk due to the clicking of all the cameras.

The main point we wanted to make at the outset was that the UK market is so important to us

But the royal couple were shown the stock out in the fields, in the sheds, and they paused to talk about what the animals were being fed. They also stopped at one point to discuss the dribble bar on the slurry spreader.

“The main point we wanted to make at the outset was that the UK market is so important to us, that every second animal they saw during the walkaround is going to end up on a supermarket shelf, fast food outlet or restaurant in the UK.

And they were surprised by that,” Paul Crosson told Irish Country Living afterwards.

“I suppose the concepts that really seemed to grab their interest was the distance that has increased from farm to fork; does the consumer at the fork end know how their food is produced?

“Equally, all of the roles that the farmer plays not just in food production but the broader countryside stewardship role. Are they adequately rewarded and do people realise that they are providing all those attributes.

“They seemed to be very well informed and interested in the broader farm viability, climate change and what that means for farming and the beef sector. I think Irish beef was something they were familiar with as a quality product and they were conscious that we have an image as a food island, if you like.”

He added that Prince William admitted he didn’t finish that famous pint of black stuff he received on the first night of their visit at the Guinness storehouse.

When asked if the royal couple were interested in importing genetics from the Derrypatrick herd, Paul said: “We’ll see”.

They spent some time talking to Teagasc countryside management specialist Catherine Keena about biodiversity in hedgerows and waterways.

She spoke about the initiatives on farms around the country to promote biodiversity and develop hedgerows so they are fit for both “birds and bees”, Catherine said afterwards that you could tell Prince William had experience laying hedgerows.

The couple then met Teagasc advisors Eilish Burke and William Byrne who introduced them to farmers, Ronan Hughes, Justin Walsh, Teleri Thomas, David Hannon and Donal Keane.

“The whole conversation was really about the environment and sustainability,” said Ronan Hughes.

Prince William asked the farmers if the general public understands their role as custodians of the land and whether there were many young farmers entering the business.

“Is the future bright for farming, do young people want to get involved?” asked William. “Do the wider public know exactly how much you do as custodians of the land?”

Suckler farmer from the Hill of Tara Justin Walsh told him that he does not see a future in beef farming for his four children.

It’s good for the public to see the Duke and Duchess here and taking an interest in agriculture

“The royal visit brings great attention to an industry that is struggling at the minute, particularly beef,” said dairy farmer David Hannon.

“It’s good for the public to see the Duke and Duchess here and taking an interest in agriculture.”

The farmers talked about how they are applying some of the research from Teagasc on their own farms; animal genetics and grass-based production systems.

Schoolchildren

The Duke and Duchess also met schoolchildren from Kiltale National School who were mostly from farming backgrounds and had completed projects on farm to fork, food production and sustainability. The children presented the Duchess with a bouquet of flowers and told them all about their projects.

They were very nice and lovely to us. They asked us all about our project on healthy eating and exercise

Kiltale NS pupil Darragh Dolan said the couple loved discussing their healthy-eating project with them.

“They were very nice and lovely to us. They asked us all about our project on healthy eating and exercise as we learned that Irish young people don’t get enough exercise and that one in four are overweight.”

Kiltale NS pupil Rachel Mulligan who met the couple said: “William told us that it is important to go outside more and to get lots of sleep.

“I told them Irish people are very proud of their cattle and farms because the grass is so green and they stay outside and not in sheds.”

School principal Eileen O’Reilly said the royal couple told her they loved their trip to Ireland and want to return with their three children.

“They said they would like to come back here with the kids and do a cycling tour and see the Irish countryside.”

Departure

Chair of Teagasc Liam Herlihy presented the royal couple with Irish bog oak that was more than 5,000 years old. The royal couple thanked him for the visit and the Duchess said they “learned a lot”.

While William and Kate stuck to the same talking points with most people they met at Grange, the buzzwords are notable; “sustainability”, “custodians of the land”, “young farmers” and “biodiversity”.

The royal family does not have a passing interest in agriculture. The Queen is the largest landowner in the world and when Prince Charles becomes king, William will take over the Duchy of Cornwall as the heir apparent.

The Duchy of Cornwall has greater acreage (over 130,000ac) than there are farmers in Ireland.

The other royal duchy in the UK is the Duchy of Lancaster, which is held by the reigning monarch, and encompasses some 45,500ac. These provide an income to the royals.

In a recent interview with ITV, Prince Charles has remarked that when he started to campaign to protect the environment in the 1970s, people considered him to be “completely potty”.

He is a champion of organic farming and created an organic brand through which tenants of the Duchy of Cornwall can sell their products.

Teagasc insiders said that it was requested that the visit focus on sustainable agriculture

William and Kate have also said that their three children George, Charlotte and Louis are interested in farming and took them lambing at their country home Anmer Hall in Norfolk for mid-term break this year.

Teagasc insiders said that it was requested that the visit focus on sustainable agriculture and were of the opinion that the direction came from the royal household.

Indeed, the visit to youth mental health charity Jigsaw, also shone a light on an area that the younger royals have been highlighting in recent years.

Choosing to turn the glare of the world’s media on Irish agriculture and beef production, within days of email leaks showing that a UK government advisor has suggested that there is no role for farmers in the UK economy, is particularly poignant.

It also comes at a time when beef consumption in the UK (our biggest export market for beef) has dropped.

As the first visit by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to Ireland, designed to build the relationship between the two countries in the face of Brexit, the visit to Teagasc seemed very significant indeed.

Additional reporting by Aine McMahon, PA.

As the world’s media departed Grange on the buses, debating whether or not Kate had been wearing Dubarry boots. However, the visit to Teagasc was noted as the first time during the three-day royal visit that Kate’s clothing gave a nod to Irish fashion.

Within an hour of the visit to Teagasc full details of Kate’s outfit, including the prices, were available on numerous websites.

So in order to counter-act an element of the focus on the very lovely duchess, Irish Country Living has attempted the painstaking task of figuring out what William wore. We have a shopping list of a dupe of the Duke’s outfit here.

Here’s how to achieve a princely country look, gentlemen:

Kate’s country look: