A farmer from Co. Tipperary has been awarded a grant of €1,000 in recognition of his “entrepreneurial use of technology”.
Darragh Haugh, from Borrisokane, was recently presented with the award from the Rise Community Fund following his efforts to improve the operation and outputs of local farms.
The RISE Community Fund is supported by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) and Granahan McCourt.
In partnership with Macra, the fund ran a national competition to find entrepreneurial young farmers with plans to use technology in innovative ways to enhance their business.
Farmer
20-year-old Darragh, who is an active member of the farming organisation, was quick to impress the judges.
The second-year agricultural science student at University College Dublin (UCD) is always eager to help on his family’s 110-cow dairy farm over 160ac in north Tipperary.
“During the pandemic, farmers faced extreme challenges as fertiliser costs continued to rise and the nitrates laws were getting more and more challenging.
“Sitting down with my father one day, we said to each other that this is the end of any fertiliser waste, in any shape or form.
“I had the idea of getting a GPS system for the tractor, figuring that this would eliminate any losses in the field from overlapping and it would allow us to know exactly how many acres we were spreading.
“This analysis could then be compared to how many bags of fertiliser we were using to ensure the amounts per acre were accurate,” Darragh said.
“I went around every paddock in the farm and mapped them. There was no more guess work, no more looking for the shiny tramline in the sun.
“We could just press the button and away you go. Every single run is 100% accurate, you know exactly how much fertiliser you are spreading, and there is no wastage whatsoever,” he said.
The young farmer estimated that they reduced fertiliser use by 10% as a result of the technology, which amounted to a “significant” reduction in cost.
Darragh has now gone on to map six other farms in the area, and he has plans to expand his operations further.
Technology
David McCourt, technology entrepreneur, founder of RISE and chair of NBI, commented: “Darragh epitomises the entrepreneurial talent that so many young farmers in Ireland have today.
“What started as a lockdown project during the pandemic has turned into a scalable business that has already developed an incredible track-record.
“We know that Ireland boasts some of the most talented farmers in the world, and with this dedicated programme awarding grants to young farmers, we’ve been honoured to champion recipients like Darragh who have crystal clear plans to use technology in new and exciting ways,” he said.
Mick Curran, chief executive of Macra, added: “We’re thrilled that together with the RISE Community Fund, we’ve now been able to offer our members this opportunity to receive cash grants to empower young farmers with their plans to use technology.
“Many congratulations to Darragh for his successful application.”