Organic Matters

This week on Organic Matters, we speak to James Donnellan, an organic suckler and sheep farmer based in Northeast Galway. James talks about his love of Aubrac cattle and the importance of getting an organic system right for the individual farmer. James speaks about why the Aubrac cattle breed may be suitable for some organic suckler farmers, from ease of calving to good carcass and conformation for finishing.* As well as his pedigree Aubrac cattle, he talks about his Belcare/EasyCare cross flock, with finished organic lambs sold to one of the main processors, together with other organic farmers. He also covers a range of other topics, including good animal housing for the winter months, sward diversity and management, sourcing feed directly from other organic farmers, and taking advantage of the Organic Capital Investment Scheme. Listen here: https://tinyurl.com/58f43efv *The Irish Aubrac Cattle Breed Society will hold its annual Elite Show and Sale on Saturday 24th October at GVM Mart in Tullamore, Co. Offaly.

This week on the Organic Matters Podcast, we speak to Elaine Bradley from the Irish Seed Savers Association based in Clare. It works to protect and preserve Ireland’s traditional seed and heritage apple varieties. Elaine talks about the Association’s activities, which are based on practising conservation by use, with their seed and gene bank acting as a living resource and safety deposit box for our food heritage now and into the future. She explains how the Association safeguards and promotes Ireland’s national collection of heritage apple varieties, many of which were nearly forgotten but have been saved by their work over the years. Varieties are produced and sold on-site, and the team also works with communities to reintroduce heritage orchards into public spaces through their Orchard Way initiative. Elaine also touches on their more recent project to establish a farmer seed network to further facilitate the exchange of heritage and organic seeds.

This week on the Organic Matters Podcast, we speak to farmer Donald Treacy, based near Athy in Co. Kildare, who runs a mixed organic farm with his wife Aideen and two sons. Donald discusses the different enterprises on Battlemount Organic Farm, which include potatoes, apples, beef and inter-crops for animal feed. The Treacys converted over a decade ago and haven’t looked back since, as it has provided the farm with many options for diversification, and enabled all members of the family to be actively involved. Both the potatoes and processed apples are sold locally as well as to an independent organic retailer, while finished organic stock is sold to an organic processor. Donald touches on various aspects of the business, including the importance of fertility for crops, the management of his suckler herd, and the production of a popular apple juice from native apple varieties in recent years.

This week, long time organic vegetable grower Dermot Carey, based in South Kildare, talks to the Organic Matters Podcast about his business. Coming from a family involved in vegetable growing and wholesaling over the years, Dermot cut his teeth in the industry from a young age. He speaks about the range of produce his grows and the different markets he uses. This includes selling directly to customers via farmers' markets, small independent shops, restaurants, as well as some wholesale. Dermot describes the changes in consumer buying habits shifting away from "traditional" Irish veg and about the types of vegetables that work well for him on his farm. In addition to touching on his approach to growing he also speaks about the need to be just as good at the business and numbers side of vegetables and being savvy about responding to consumer demand.

This week on the Organic Matters Podcast, we speak to farmer Brian Meredith based in Co. Laois, who runs a spring and autumn organic suckler-to-beef herd with his father. He discusses coming home to farm, the transition to organics and re-integrating tillage back onto the farm to diversify the business and increase feed autonomy. Brian talks about breeding Angus and Hereford cattle as they finish well off grass, learning to grow their own grain to feed younger stock and their experience with preventative health management in the herd. He also looks ahead to the future of the farm and tells listeners about the farm’s involvement in an initiative commissioned by the Irish Organic Association to map all the different habitats and estimate the carbon storage and sequestration potential on the farm using LiDAR technology