The Farmers Journal team of farmer writes journalists from Ireland, New Zealand, the UK and beyond are dedicated to providing local farming news, comment and opinion across the dairy, beef & tillage sectors.

LATEST ARTICLES
News
Farmer writes: modern day meitheal in the snow
Karen McCabe
Karen McCabe takes stock of the winter so far and looks forward to the bring ahead.
Farmer writes: modern day meitheal in the snow
Farmer writes: the road less travelled
15 January 2025 Farmer Writes
Farmer writes: the road less travelled
Gerald Potterton muses the impact Google Maps has had on traversing the country and whether or not we would be better off without the technology.
Rain driving on grass growth in New Zealand
15 January 2025 Northern Ireland
Rain driving on grass growth in New Zealand
Zac Elkin from Craigantlet in Co Down, is currently managing a dairy farm in Canterbury, New Zealand.
Midwinter check on performance
John Egerton used the festive period to assess animal growth rates this winter.
15 January 2025 Northern Ireland
Farmer Writes: Not everything puts on weight over Christmas
Accidents can happen in the blink of an eye and all of a sudden there’s no one there to do the work or feed the stock. People can be left in an awful situation overnight, James Strain writes.
13 January 2025 Farmer Writes
Farmer Writes: TB breakdown after three clear years
Since we are a closed herd, I can’t buy in, so I just have to wait for the heifers to calve into the system.
12 January 2025 Farmer Writes
Year in review and planning for 2025
Castlederg dairy farmer Jessica Pollock, looks back on 2024 and what lies ahead in 2025
8 January 2025 Northern Ireland
Farmer Writes: Hot markets the backdrop to cold snap
Much of west Cork has escaped the worst extremes of this cold spell but strong market performances will help get the year off to a good start.
8 January 2025 Farmer Writes
Farmer Writes: The snow caused a change in our plans
We were due to vaccinate for IBR and Rotavirus this week, but didn’t get around to it yet because of the snow and ice around the yard, writes Padraig Callanan.
8 January 2025 Farmer Writes
A new year and a fresh start
It’s important to leave 2024 behind you and look forward into the new farming year, writes Karen McCabe.
1 January 2025 Farmer Writes
Would I plant beans in April again? No
Gerald Potterton takes a look back at the year that was 2024 in the tillage fields.
1 January 2025 Farmer Writes
Scanning result is nothing to brag about
Derek Robinson had hoped his flock might have produced a scanning result closer to 200%.
1 January 2025 Northern Ireland