An Appreciation: the late Liam Meehan, Newmarket-on-Fergus, Co Clare

Our first encounter with Liam and Maureen Meehan was in September 1991.

They were multi award-winning farmers when we met during our first week in Ireland. Liam was a highly respected farmer, a superb stockman and grass farmer, and had an insatiable appetite for new ideas.

Our role in Ireland was to help re-focus Irish farmers on low-cost grass farming.

Our visit to Liam was to prove instrumental in this.

During that September visit, the home farm was well-grazed out and third cut silage about to be cut on the outfarm, 1km up the road.

The question was asked “could the silage ground be grazed?” and the next day, after careful consideration, the cows were on their way to the silage ground.

This rested the home farm so that there was grass to graze well into late autumn with a long grazing rotation and early spring grass and turnout.

The result was a lot less silage and meal being used.

While normal nowadays, this practice back then was revolutionary.

Liam was the start of what became known as “extended grazing”. He was deeply passionate about dairy farming, the lifestyle and inter-generational wealth that farming can offer when done well.

Con Hurley, then dairy editor of the Irish Farmers Journal, featured Liam frequently, promoting practices that “put more money in farmers’ pockets”.

Liam left a wonderful legacy through hosting many farm groups, always generous sharing knowledge and in mentoring many young farmers.