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FARMING - COLUMNS

A collection of the latest columns, analysis and opinion from the farming desk. Enjoy.

Brian Reidy

Hazell Mullins, Vet on the Moove

Kieran Coughlan, Farm Finance

Paula Hynes, Hoofing It

<p>Denis Lehane taking to the floor with Posh Spice for an energetic 'Siege of Ennis', apparently... </p>

farming

The Beckham wedding... Finally, auld Lehane discloses what he saw that night

Denis Lehane follows Brooklyn Beckham's Insta post with his own bombshell revelations about THAT first dance — but it's not what you might expect. Of course, it's this week's Lighten Up

<p>In the absence of a transfer of title or a long-term lease, the legal owner of the land is also regarded as the owner of the dwelling, regardless of who paid for its construction.</p>

farming

Ask a solicitor: Is it worth it to risk building a home on family land without title?

<p>Fresh cows, and heifers in particular, are the most vulnerable and least competitive animals in the milking herd. They tend to avoid situations where they must compete for feed, water or cubicle space, and this avoidance reduces overall intake.</p>

farming

Brian Reidy: Why feed space, water, and cubicles matter for early lactation

Cows in a fresh grassy field on a clear day

farming

Kieran Coughlan: Cashflow pinch is on its way

Rachel Martin: Bord Bia row is no longer about beef — it’s about who agri policy is for

farming

Rachel Martin: Bord Bia row is no longer about beef — it’s about who agri policy is for

Brian Reidy: Why dry matter intake is key to early lactation performance

Moines House

Ask a solicitor: Turning a derelict farmhouse into a home — how the vacant property grant applies

To qualify, the property must have been vacant for a minimum of two years immediately prior to the grant application

Tue, 03 Feb, 2026

Rachel Martin: Standards must come top down

Rachel Martin: Standards must come top down

I used to think it would be a bad job to be caught in a supermarket with a trolley full of produce that didn’t align with what I wrote about for a living.

Wed, 28 Jan, 2026

Paula Hynes: What advice would I give a 20-year-old wanting to farm?

Paula Hynes: What advice would I give a 20-year-old wanting to farm?

It's been a truly international week for Paula and the gang on the farm in Aherla — and beyond

Tue, 27 Jan, 2026

Portrait of an agronomist with a tablet in front of the agricultural machine

Ask a solicitor: My job is changing – and I'm worried what is coming

A genuine redundancy must be based on the role being eliminated, not the person, writes rural solicitor Karen Walsh

Mon, 26 Jan, 2026

Paula Hynes: Celebrating a calf poo

Paula Hynes: Celebrating a calf poo

There is a saying in farming that where there is livestock, there is dead stock. Sometimes animals die, and we as farmers feel they shouldn’t have, but when we come across an animal like little Pat, which is fighting to survive, we give it our best shot and give it all the help in the world.

Tue, 13 Jan, 2026

Man looking at beef steak in supermarket aisle

Mercosur: A 1.5% oversupply that could cost Irish beef hundreds of millions

The EU consumer wants cheaper food. It is a misnomer to think consumers are broadly willing to pay a premium for food produced under higher standards, writes rural accountant Kieran Coughlan

Mon, 12 Jan, 2026

The Statue of Liberty over the Scene of New york cityscape river side which location is lower manhattan,Architecture and buildin

Lighten Up: Auld Lehane... On the ground in New York City

New York... it's like Macroom on a fair day, only multiplied by 10, writes our Auld Lehane from the 'Big Apple'

Mon, 12 Jan, 2026

Man Signing Last Will & Testament

S Ask a solicitor: The biggest mistakes people make when drafting a will

Starting the process is often the hardest step, writes rural solicitor Karen Walsh

Mon, 12 Jan, 2026

Woman injecting semaglutide in her abdomen

Stephen Cadogan: A slimmer appetite but better food – the challenge for agri-food

The significant rise in the number of consumers using weight-loss drugs has implications for Ireland's food industry as users' appetites for previously loved foods changes

Wed, 07 Jan, 2026

Paula Hynes: Snowy roads, new calves and the on farm challenge

Paula Hynes: Snowy roads, new calves and the on farm challenge

Danske Bank are the main sponsors of the RUAS Winter Fair, so when livestock classes were cancelled at the show due to the bluetongue outbreak in Northern Ireland, it was fantastic to see them step up for the on farm challenge, writes Aherla dairy farmer Paula Hynes

Tue, 06 Jan, 2026

Retired man looking at cattle grazing in a field

Ask a solicitor: No will, no spouse, no children — who inherits the farm?

In intestacy, the estate is distributed in a fixed order, depending on which relatives are alive at the time of death, writes solicitor Karen Walsh.

Mon, 05 Jan, 2026

Close-Up Of Text On Table

Kieran Coughlan: Are you ready for auto-enrolment? Key steps for agri-food employers

Auto-enrolment is a new scheme designed to ensure that most employees who do not currently have access to an employer pension scheme will be contributing toward their own personal pension fund, writes rural tax adviser Kieran Coughlan

Wed, 31 Dec, 2025

Young woman's first day working at a burger restaurant

Stephen Cadogan: Can wild venison really threaten the beef market?

Wild venison has replaced beef at several stadiums and event spaces in the UK and Ireland — but what does it mean for the beef market?

Wed, 31 Dec, 2025

Yorkshire Farm

Ask a solicitor: I was promised the farm, but it was left to someone else

When a person has committed years of their life to caring for property in reliance on assurances given to them, it feels deeply unjust to be left without security, writes rural solicitor Karen Walsh

Mon, 29 Dec, 2025

Two donkeys

Lighten Up: A girl's best friend — how Sophie Ellis-Bextor fell for an Irish donkey

T'was like a story straight out of Shrek, only with a pop giant instead of an ogre, writes our auld Lehane this week.

Mon, 29 Dec, 2025

Paula Hynes: A Parisian Christmas amid France's farmer protests

Paula Hynes: A Parisian Christmas amid France's farmer protests

The passion and flair the French have for food means they are very accepting of seeing their farmers protest, writes Cork dairy farmer Paula Hynes

Tue, 16 Dec, 2025

mechanical bull

Lighten Up: A Christmas rodeo at the mart

Ever a man to spot an opportunity, our auld Lehane has fixed upon a great scheme to further enhance our cattle marts standing in the world, in this week's Lighten Up

Mon, 15 Dec, 2025

Bluetongue outbreak

Paula Hynes: We need to use common sense when it comes to bluetongue

We must not be sucked into conspiracy theories, we need to be vigilant

Mon, 08 Dec, 2025

Young woman is stealing at store, shop, boutique at shopping mall. Shoplifting concept.

Lighten Up: Guarding Cork's Christmas knickers

Thirty years ago, if you were looking for Auld Lehane, you wouldn't find him out here on this farm in Kilmichael, busily carrying buckets across the yard to feed two hungry calves...

Mon, 08 Dec, 2025

Young pilot candidate receiving flight training meets with the tower

Lighten Up: Tractor pilots wanted

Auld Lehane, the self-declared Lord Byron of Irish farming, has a poem this week to lift the spirit, and indeed the finances, of the struggling farmer.

Tue, 02 Dec, 2025

Paula Hynes: The North's bluetongue scare has given us a dose of the Winter Fair blues

Paula Hynes: The North's bluetongue scare has given us a dose of the Winter Fair blues

Unfortunately, the bah-humbug of Christmas show spirit has come in the form of two suspected cases of Bluetongue in Northern Ireland, writes Aherla dairy farmer Paula Hynes

Mon, 01 Dec, 2025

Road transport. Lorry carrying liquid products traveling on the motorway.

Paula Hynes: It’s time to decide — volume game or value game for Irish dairy?

Dairy production globally is a volume game anyway. But if we adapt our cow type on farm, then so too do our dairy processors need to adapt, writes Cork dairy farmer Paula Hynes

Wed, 26 Nov, 2025

BBC Satellite Dishes, West London

There's some truth in the cattle mart rumours that Auld Lehane could soon be running the BBC

From chit-chatting to royalty to cleaning out the loo, there's no job our Auld Lehane says he wouldn't tackle, in this week's Lighten Up

Mon, 24 Nov, 2025

Lighten Up: Gabriel Byrne — the sexiest man in Irish farming

Lighten Up: Gabriel Byrne — the sexiest man in Irish farming

The 80s were a great time to be an Irish farmer. We were like Tom Cruise on a Massey, writes Denis in this week's Lighten Up

Sat, 15 Nov, 2025

Silage clamp on a dairy farm in England, United Kingdom

Brian Reidy: The causes and cures for heating in grass silage

Moulds can thrive in silage that’s not well managed, worsening the problem, advises independent ruminant nutritionist Brian Reidy

Thu, 13 Nov, 2025

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