Maurice Hallahan

Grange, Co. Longford

My name is Maurice Hallahan. I have a farm in Grange, Co. Longford, which is about one hundred acres, eighteen of which is rented.

Up until thirteen years ago we were a dairy farm, milking cows. But for health reasons we had to change. I now have dry stock, I buy yearling heifers and I finish them. When I got out of milking I was starting from scratch with a new animal, I put a lot of thought into choosing the right stock and I started with Hereford and a few other breeds.

Gradually though my stock has changed and this year I only bought Herefords. The Hereford seems to finish better. Most of the other breeds I was buying were from dairy herds and they were a little bit harder to keep and finish.

Our grazing system carries on from the dairy system we originally had. We have paddocks set up and I move the fencing every two days. Some of my fields are very heavy in clover, I keep an eye on them and look after them, and they don’t need much nitrogen during the year. I reseed a percentage of the farm every year, mostly it’s the sileage fields, the grazing ground is pretty good here and I get good yields of grass and clover in most of the grazing fields. With the paddock system and roadway system I have set up, it’s pretty easy to move the herd around. I have five groups of about thirty cattle as well as two groups of older animals.

Going forward I plan to stick with the Hereford and do what I’m doing for another few years. The Hereford suits my system, they’re easy to manage and I have no reason to change.

While the paddock system is a great help, the docility of the Hereford makes a big difference as well. They aren’t inclined to go through or over wires, or over gates like some other breeds that have a tendency to do things like that.

I do aim to be more sustainable on the farm and clover is a big part of that, it cuts down the amount of nitrogen I’m using which is good for the environment. I’m always on the lookout for new places to add hedges to improve the general outlook of the farm.

Going forward I plan to stick with the Hereford and do what I’m doing for another few years. The Hereford suits my system, they’re easy to manage and I have no reason to change.