Brian McDonnell

Brian McDonnell Profile Picture

Technical Dairy Specialist

Brian McDonnell is from Raheny, Co. Dublin. He has an honours degree in Sustainable Agriculture from Dundalk IT. He has worked on dairy and beef farms in both Ireland and the UK, including Teagasc Grange and a large-scale 650-cow dairy farm which also had a 1,200 animal youngstock-rearing farm in Scotland. He has a keen interest in agriculture and particularly the dairy sector and in his spare time is active in local rugby and golf.

Open season: When can you start spreading slurry?

Environment

Open season: When can you start spreading slurry?

The end of the closed period for slurry spreading, chemical fertiliser and farmyard manure is in sight, with spreading once...
Early application of N is beneficial…but should I spread?

Dairy

Early application of N is beneficial…but should I spread?

With the closed period coming to an end on farms in Zone A, and with the remaining Zones due to...
Mastitis in dairy cows: Causes and prevention

Dairy

Mastitis in dairy cows: Causes and prevention

Mastitis is the most economically challenging disease on a dairy farm, with freshly-calved cows and heifers the most susceptible to...
Demand for calves continues into new year

Beef

Demand for calves continues into new year

The latest Covid-19 Level 5 restrictions and recent bad weather had lead to a cancellation of many sales planned for...
Dairy advice: 3 jobs to complete on the farm pre-calving

Dairy

Dairy advice: 3 jobs to complete on the farm pre-calving

With the Christmas period now behind us, attention is back to the farm and what jobs need to be completed...
IGA dairy conference 2021: ‘Can we sell our milk?’

Dairy

IGA dairy conference 2021: ‘Can we sell our milk?’

The Irish Grassland Association (IGA) held its dairy conference, titled ‘Future-proofing Irish dairying’, yesterday, Wednesday, January 6. Jim Woulfe, chief...
‘Decreasing nitrogen application can reduce farm profitability’

Dairy

‘Decreasing nitrogen application can reduce farm profitability’

The expansion of the Irish dairy sector in recent years has increased the land area allocated to dairy farming. With...
Using LESS is a more efficient way to spread slurry

Dairy

Using LESS is a more efficient way to spread slurry

For a long number of years, many farms will have spread their slurry using a tanker and splash-plate. This was...
IGA dairy conference: What’s in store at this year’s event?

Dairy

IGA dairy conference: What’s in store at this year’s event?

The Irish Grassland Association (IGA) will hold its dairy conference, entitled ‘Future proofing Irish dairying’, at 10:00am on Wednesday, January...
Milk replacer: What should I be looking for?

Dairy

Milk replacer: What should I be looking for?

The calving season will soon be starting and with that comes the feeding of calves. Many farmers may find it...
Management hint: Your pre-calving checklist

Dairy

Management hint: Your pre-calving checklist

With the calving season due to start on many farms in just a number of weeks, the downtime between now...
Milk Price Tracker: See which processor is paying the highest price for November milk

Dairy

Milk Price Tracker: See which processor is paying the highest price for November milk

The latest Milk Price Tracker – brought to you by AgriLand and the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA) – details milk prices from the most...
Management tool: Locomotion scoring

Dairy

Management tool: Locomotion scoring

Locomotion scoring is a useful tool as part of a routine herd health evaluation to detect lameness within the herd....
Some simple ways of reducing the workload on dairy farms in spring

Dairy

Some simple ways of reducing the workload on dairy farms in spring

The calving of a large number of cows in a short space of time is fast approaching on many spring-calving...
Have you enough space for all your calves at peak?

Dairy

Have you enough space for all your calves at peak?

As 2020 comes to a close, many spring-calving dairy farmers’ focus has shifted away from drying off cows to calving...
‘2020 was a reasonable year for dairy farmers’

Dairy

‘2020 was a reasonable year for dairy farmers’

2020 saw milk prices remaining stable, with Covid-19 not having as big of an impact as many had expected. To...
‘I’d almost say that Covid-19 had a positive effect on the milk market’

Dairy

‘I’d almost say that Covid-19 had a positive effect on the milk market’

Milk price in 2020 remained quite stable throughout the year, with Covid-19 not having as big of an impact as...
Setting up the farm for spring 2021

Dairy

Setting up the farm for spring 2021

A recent report by Marion Beecher, a research officer, and Martina Gormley, a dairy specialist with Teagasc, has looked at getting...