Farmer swaps Westmeath for Wild West

A Westmeath family are set to become Irish farming pioneers when they set off for the prairies of South Dakota tomorrow.

Michael Crinion is heading to Mount Rushmore State with his wife Patricia and three daughters, Miriam, aged eight, Caroline, seven, and Áine, four.

The couple have sold their family poultry business in Kinnegad and purchased 160 acres with a friend in South Dakota, with an option on a further 800.