Programme aims to help sheep farmers increase output by 20%

SHEEP farmers will gain insights into boosting the national flock’s production with the launch of the Teagasc Sheep Research and Knowledge Transfer programme.

Formally launched in Mellows Campus, Athenry, Co Galway, yesterday, the programme will help Ireland’s 30,000 sheep farmers meet their target of increasing the output of the sheep sector by 20%, as detailed in the Food Harvest 2020 report.

The programme will help sheep farmers, who keep a national breeding flock of 2.5 million ewes, to increase efficiency at farm level, increase production nationally, and increase the level of exports of sheep meat.

Speaking at the launch, Teagasc director Gerry Boyle reiterated Teagasc’s commitment to the sheep sector, pointing to the establishment of the new sheep research demonstration farm, the recruitment of additional researchers to the Teagasc sheep research team, the expansion of the BETTER farm sheep programme, and the enhanced knowledge transfer programme to drive efficiency at farm level.

A new sheep research demonstration farm of 350 breeding ewes has been set up in Athenry. The focus on this farm will be on the breeding of prolific sheep, with an aim of increasing the national weaning rate from the current national average of 1.3 lambs per ewe.

Two prolific groups of sheep will be evaluated at three different stocking rates to determine the optimum level.

The Sheep BETTER farm programme, which consists of commercial sheep farms used for research and knowledge transfer, is being expanded to 10 farms, spread around the country. The data gathered from these farms will be used to improve efficiency on other commercial farms.

Two new researchers, Noirin McHugh and Philip Creighton, were recruited to the Teagasc research team earlier this year.

There will be increased collaboration between the Teagasc sheep research team and UCD, as part of a new partnership on Agriculture Research, Education and Innovation that has been agreed between the two organisations and which will be launched later in the autumn.

Teagasc will also be collaborating with Sheep Ireland to increase the rate of genetic gain in the national flock.

Teagasc sheep enterprise leader, Michael Diskin, said that there is significant scope to increase production efficiency through increased utilisation of grazed grass, and through a higher rate of genetic gain.