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One of the most important choices suckler farmers will make is their bull. In April, Adam Wood had these video tips on buying and managing a stock bull.
Staying with breeding – the merits of dairy cross suckler cows continued to be debated this year. ICBF geneticist Andrew Cromie advised against them.
The final target of all this work is weight. In January, Matthew Halpin made this video with farmers and experts on best practices for weighing cattle.
In the spring, live exports to Turkey picked up, offering hope of a new market outlet. We got exclusive access to one of the ships transporting Irish cattle there.
The Irish Farmers Journal ran several successful livestock demonstrations at marts and shows around the country this year. In Ennis in February, it was all about calving.
In April, we also opened the Tullamore demonstration farm. Farmers can read all about the progress of this mixed beef and sheep enterprise every week.
Finally, let’s catch up with the stars of this year’s spring calving season – the quad Charolais calves born on the farm of Tom Clair in Co Clare in February.
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