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Co Armagh dairy farmer William Irvine has been elected as deputy president of the Ulster Farmers Union (UFU) at the organisation’s AGM held at the Eikon Exhibition Centre, Balmoral Park, Lisburn on Saturday.
Irvine joins the UFU presidential team headed up by new president Victor Chestnutt from Bushmills in north Antrim. He succeeds Co Armagh sheep farmer Ivor Ferguson.
The other deputy president is Fermanagh farmer David Brown, who was re-elected at the AGM for a second two-year term.
In the race for the second deputy president position, Irvine was up against Dungiven hill sheep and dairy farmer Ian Buchanan. At one stage it looked like Irvine might be the only candidate standing, before Buchanan decided to let his name go forward.
With Irvine successful, normal convention is that he will now serve two terms (four years) as deputy president, before taking on the role of president in 2024.
Background
William Irvine farms the Halftown Holstein herd at Mountnorris in Co Armagh, alongside his son David. He previously chaired the UFU dairy committee, and his wife Ruth is also prominent in UFU circles.
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