The Dairy Edge

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The Dairy Edge is Teagasc’s dairy podcast for farmers with the latest information, insights and opinion to improve your dairy farm performance. Visit the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

HACE 3 DÍAS

The Road to 2030: A Clear Direction for Irish Dairy

Emer Kennedy, Dairy Enterprise leader, Teagasc Moorepark and Joe Patton, Head of Dairy Knowledge Transfer, join James Dunne on this week’s Dairy Edge to discuss the recently launched Teagasc Dairy Roadmap 2030 — a blueprint for where the Irish dairy sector needs to go over the remainder of this decade. The roadmap sets out clear KPIs across profitability, sustainability, breeding, labour and environmental performance. For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

42 min
HACE 6 DÍAS

Your Weekly Grass10 Update

For this week’s Grass10 grazing management update, John Maher discusses on/off grazing, picking your paddocks and grass budgeting. The featured farmer is Ger Whelan from Ballinahinch, Co. Clare. Read more from this week’s Grass10 newsletter and subscribe for weekly updates at: https://bit.ly/Grass10-17thFeb For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

7 min
16 FEB

€500 per Cow: Building the Financial Safety Net for 2026

Donal Whelton, Head of Agri at AIB, joins Stuart Childs to discuss the financial situation that Irish dairy farmers are currently in and what challenges they may face and the solutions they may require in 2026. Donal says that the Irish dairy sector is entering 2026 from a position of financial strength. Farm debt levels are nearly half of what they were in 2009. Meanwhile, farm cash balances have doubled over the same period. Overdraft utilisation in dairy is currently at its second lowest in 20 years and despite tighter milk prices this year, the sector overall has stronger balance sheets than in previous downturns. Cost inflation is now the primary financial pressure. Total dairy farm operating costs have risen by 46% since 2020 with the key drivers of this being fertiliser and energy and concentrate feed which is up 56% and now averaging 9 c/L of production cost. Production costs range from mid-30s to mid-50s c/L, creating major resilience differences between farms. Knowing your break-even milk price, preparing 2025 accounts early (especially for tax liabilities), and targeting cost control will be important this year. Finally, Donal offers some advice around being prepared for a year like 2026, he recommends financial buffers such as €500 per cow working capital available at start of year and where debt level is >€3,000/cow, hold a reserve to cover 12 months of repayments. Farmers should complete simple forward cashflow projections (even in a notebook) to quantify funding needs accurately before approaching banks. Consider financing capital projects or tax liabilities rather than depleting cash. Banks can offer overdraft increases, term loans, interest-only options, or retrospective CapEx funding to help ease any cashflow pressures people might experience however, it is important that people identify pressure early and engage early as cashflow support is more effective when proactively structured than reactively requested. For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

35 min
12 FEB

Your Weekly Grass10 Update

For this week’s Grass10 grazing management update, John Maher discusses current grass growth, prediction for grass growth, plus rain and average soil temperature for the next 7 days. The featured farmer is Stephen Burchill from Bandon, Co. Cork. Read more from this week’s Grass10 newsletter and subscribe for weekly updates at: https://bit.ly/Grass10-10thFebruary For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

8 min
9 FEB

Reducing your workload on dairy farms this spring

Conor Hogan, Research Officer with Teagasc Moorepark, whose work has focused on labour efficiency and work organisation on dairy farms, and Martina Gormley, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, who works closely with farmers on practical ways to reduce workload, join James Dunne on this week's Dairy Edge. With spring calving commenced on the majority of dairy farms it places an increased demand on farm workload and for this episode, we’ll be discussing what the research tells us about managing workload, what practical changes farmers can make to reduce pressure, and how small system adjustments can make a big difference to both efficiency and quality of life. For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

33 min
5 FEB

Your Weekly Grass10 Update

For this week’s Grass10 grazing management update, John Maher explains why opening farm cover measurement should be prioritised this week. Plus he discusses the importance of completing a spring rotation planner in PastureBase with the target for March 1st to have about 30% of the farm grazed. Read more from this week’s Grass10 newsletter and subscribe for weekly updates at: https://bit.ly/Grass10-3rdFebruary For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

6 min
4 FEB

February Focus: Fresh Cows, Quality Colostrum & Early Grazing Planning

Padraig O’Connor, Dairy Technician with Teagasc in Grange, joins Stuart Childs with tips and advice for the month of February. Padraig discusses the management of the freshly calved cows as a separate group. Keeping these cows in for a few days after calving in a fresh-calved group allows recovery, easier observation and reduced bullying. Control of the colostrum group also simplifies milking management and use of available help. Padraig then talks about testing colostrum quality with a refractometer. Use a Brix refractometer (target >22%) to quickly check colostrum quality. This helps ensure adequate passive immunity for calves and flags potential diet issues. If readings are low, review the dry cow diet. Short-term protein supplementation (e.g., soybean meal pre-calving) may help improve quality. With reports of many cows over-conditioned this year, milk fever is a real risk. Padraig recommends focussing on correct dry cow minerals (especially magnesium), appropriate body condition (≈3.0–3.25), and controlled feeding for later calvers where feasible. Milk fever is a gateway disease linked to retained cleanings, mastitis, and fertility losses. Finally, Padraig advises people to prepare early for spring grazing opportunities. Even with poor weather, monitor drier paddocks and be ready to turn cows out for short (2-3 hour) grazings to reduce feed costs and support production. Set up fences and access in advance to act quickly when conditions allow; short grazing bouts can work without paddock water if cows have good access in sheds. For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

21 min
29 ENE

Your Weekly Grass10 Update

For this week’s Grass10 grazing management update, John Maher gives an update on the first set of figures in terms of grass supply from PastureBase Ireland. Plus he talks about the grazing management plan for the spring. Read more from this week’s Grass10 newsletter and subscribe for weekly updates at: https://bit.ly/Grass10-27thJanuary For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

7 min

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The Dairy Edge is Teagasc’s dairy podcast for farmers with the latest information, insights and opinion to improve your dairy farm performance. Visit the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/