Bonniconlon man named Young Farmer of Year

NATIONAL TITLE FOR MAYO?FBD Young Farmer of the Year 2014, SeΡn O’Donnell, celebrates with his wife Jackie at the awards banquet in the Westlodge Hotel, Bantry. The competition, run by Macra na Feirme, in partnership with the IFA rewarded SeΡn with a €3,000 travel voucher.

Positivity the key for the new Farmer of the Year


Bonniconlon’s SeΡn O’Donnell wins prestigious national prize

Anton McNulty

Irish farmers should look at the New Zealand model of farming where there is more of a focus on the business side of the sector, according to the Young Farmer of the Year.
SeΡn O’Donnell, a daily farmer from Behy Beg near Bonniconlon, was named the FBD Young Farmer of the Year at an awards ceremony in Bantry, Co Cork last week. The 33-year-old farmer beat off competition from farmers from all over the country and a ‘grilling’ from a seven person panel to claim the prestigious title, which is organised by Macra na Feirme in partnership with the IFA and sponsors, FBD.
The dairy farmer farms 60 hectares of land with a herd of 110 cattle and last year he spent a month with a group of up to 30 farmers in New Zealand visiting a number of farms. SeΡn explained that the trip was a ‘real eye opener’ and Irish farmers could learn from their counterparts in the land of the long cloud.
“They farm more on the business side of things while here in Ireland we tend to concentrate more on the technical side and worry about the herd. There it is more of a business and they think of ways of turning one dollar into five,” he explained.

‘Exciting time’
Next year is expected to be an exciting time for daily farmers with the scrapping of the quota system and SeΡn believes it will have a beneficial impact on the sector and on the country as a whole.
“New Zealand does not have the quota but they did 25 years ago and when they had the quota system their herd size would have been on par with Ireland. When the quota went they expanded their herd and now it is four times the size of Ireland’s. In New Zealand in the 1980s, agriculture was described as a sunset industry and now its driving their economy. In Ireland agricultural exports could become the biggest sector in the economy,” he said while adding the sector should learn from the Celtic Tiger and not grow too big too soon.
SeΡn took over the running of the family farm in 2008 when he was only 27 having graduated with a degree in business, travelled for a while and worked in construction.
“I came back in 2008 and it [starting farming] was something in the back of my mind. My father was taking a step back and I gave it a start. I wouldn’t be doing it if I didn’t enjoy it but with dairy farming it is seven days a week and there are different challenges. But you have to adjust to a positive mindset and there are always ways to overcome problems. I’m part of a farmers’ discussion group and we bounce ideas off each other.”
SeΡn first went to New Zealand ten years ago while travelling and visited friends who worked on a farm and it was there he first heard of Contract Rearing. This involves the movement of replacement heifers from the owner’s farm for rearing on contract by another farmer and SeΡn was one of the first in the region to farm that way.
“It is a New Zealand idea and it frees up land and allows you to concentrate fully on milking. It frees up your time and labour as well and I have found it to be cost neutral. When I started in 2008 I had 40 cows, now I have 110 and plan to go to 150 cows.”

Question time
As part of the judging process, two judges visited SeΡn’s farm to interview him and he qualified for the final and faced five other farmers for the top prize. The final ceremony consisted of a interview by a panel of seven judges with questions ranging from grass growth to SeΡn’s overall personality.
SeΡn admitted he took ‘a bit of a grilling’ but he sufficiently impressed the judges to claim the FBD Young Farmer of the Year award. In doing so he followed in the footsteps of fellow Mayo daily farmer, Timmy Quinn who won the award in 2008.
In winning the award, SeΡn went back to Bonniconlon with a specially commissioned art piece by Irish artist, Thomas Taaffe, and a travel bursary worth €3,000.
Married to Jackie since 2007, SeΡn has three boys aged under six years and still plays junior football for Bonniconlon. As a full time farmer, he admits that getting time off can be difficult but tries to structure his day around his children going to playschool and national school. He does admit he is fortunate his father is able to step in and this enabled him to travel to New Zealand last year.
Another way SeΡn has been able to free up time for himself was when he modernised his milking parlour with the help of Belcarra man John Lynn of MilkTech Ltd which supplies and fits milking machinery.
“I modernised my milking parlour in 2010 and it has really sped up the process and freed up my day. Essentially milking takes place in the morning and evening and it has taken an hour off my day. When you are a one man labour unit you need to free up time and be more efficient,” he said.
Speaking at the Ballina Municipal District meeting last week, Bonniconlon councillors John O’Hara and Annie May Reape both congratulated Sean on winning the award.