Co. Laois dairy farmer Seamus Holland built a 16m underpass on his farm to fully connect the two halves of his dairy grazing block, but would he recommend the move for other farmers?

He outlined the challenges and benefits of the tunnel during a Teagasc farm infrastructure event on his farm in Toberboe, near Durrow, Co. Laois this week.

Holland, who has a 240-cow dairy herd, was previously day grazing over the road and night grazing on the parlour side which was negatively impacting his grass management strategy.

He said: "Good design fixes all problems."

The tunnel cost Holland €98,000, excluding VAT, with the expenses outlined in the table below:

The cost also does not include a €5,000 bond paid to the council that is refundable provided the underpass does not impact the road surface or quality.

Holland is awaiting Targeted Agriculture Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) approval, which will cover up to 40% of a ceiling of €90,000.

The Co. Laois farmer described himself as "lucky" in not encountering rock when digging.

The tunnel also avoided impacting waterways and pipes, which would have required consultation with Uisce Éireann.

The tunnel includes a 2,000gal tank and Holland has a specially designed scraper to clean the underpass.

Sheds

The event also focused on the benefits of well-thought-out sheds.

The farm has a shed with 205 cubicles, with older straw-bedded sheds for lame cows.

The cubicle shed has a middle passageway that is over 11ft-wide and can allow a tractor to drive through if a cow goes down in the middle of the rows.

Farmers were also advised of the importance of being ready for 2028, when the required slurry storage rate for a cow will change from 0.33m³/week to 0.4m³/week.

According to Sarah Cussen from Teagasc Portlaoise, this means farmers that while currently require approximately 1,160gal/cow over the winter, this will change to 1,400gal/cow in 16 months.

Having planning in place and designs ready before applying for TAMS approval will save farmers' time, stress, and money.

The event also highlighted Holland's calving shed, with Teagasc adviser Lorcan Dooley recommending that calving sheds should house between 10-15% of the herd, especially where six-week calving rates are high.

Guideline building costs

On the day, the Teagasc advisers also provided guideline building costs, based on 2025 figures, for infrastructure on farms.

Parlour costs worked out in 2025 at approximately €20,000/unit, excluding the built-tank but including the standing yard and parlour housing.

Teagasc advised farmers that these are 2025 figures so may have increased due to rises in the cost of oil since March 2026.

Costs will also vary between farms, as every yard is unique and presents different challenges from planning restrictions to soil type and local waterways, the advisers said.

Under TAMS 3, grant rates run from 40%-60% depending on the applicant's eligibility under various components of the scheme.

This is generally capped at a maximum investment ceiling of €90,000, or €160,000 for registered farm partnerships.

The Dairy Equipment Scheme grant is 40% up to 90,000 or a maximum of €36,000.

The Woman Farmer Capital Investment Scheme has a grant of 60% up to €90,000 for standard applicants with an enhanced grant ceiling of €160,000 available for registered farm partnerships.