A large crowd of both organic and conventional farmers gathered on the farm of Micheal Holmes, near Mulranny, Co. Mayo for an event on organic lamb finishing.

The event on Wednesday (August 5) was hosted by Teagasc and marks the first of three organic lamb finishing events nationwide

The next event is taking place at Kenmare Livestock Mart in Co. Kerry on Tuesday, August 11 at 7:00pm, with the final event taking place in Fenagh, Co. Carlow on Wednesday, August 12, at 6:30pm.

Michael Holmes will be well known at sheep marts across the west of Ireland having previously bought in lambs for finishing.

However, in recent years he has transitioned to organic farming and now finishes only his own lambs.

Holmes farms predominantly Mayo Blackface and crossbred ewes, lambing from late March into early April.

All lambs produced on the farm are sold to Irish Country Meats (ICM) and are slaughtered at the ICM site in Navan, Co. Meath.

ICM's James Smyth was present at the event with a representative from Kepak in attendance also.

Smyth delivered a live demonstration with tips and advice for farmers drafting lambs and discussed the key aspects to look out for including weight and flesh cover.

Also speaking at the event, Teagasc's Philip Creighton gave an update on the latest research from Teagasc, Athenry in Co. Galway on the organic lamb finishing feeding trials.

He said that in lowland lamb production, the introduction of a forage crop reduces the number of days to slaughter and also reduces the level of concentrate supplementation required.

The host farmer praised the Organic Farming Scheme but said that meeting the required minimum factory carcass-weight can be challenging with the cost of organic concentrate feeding.

In relation to organic lamb finishing, he said: "Any lamb, you can finish them to a good weight, but it will be costly."

Teagasc's Jacinta O'Neill reminded farmers that professional quad bike (ATV) safety training is mandatory for all workplace and farm operators.

She said that the courses generally cost €250-€300 and that no grant support is expected to be provided for these courses as the training is mandatory.

After the lamb drafting demonstration, a panel discussion on the current state of play and future outlook of organic lamb production in Ireland took place.

Speaking on the panel were:

Padraig Brennan, chair of the Organic Strategy Forum, ;
Ryan George, client and stakeholder manager for organics at Bord Bia;
James Smyth, ICM Navan general manager;
Julian Pawlowski, organic specialist and inspector for the Organic Beef and Lamb Innovation Group (OBLIG) in Ireland.

Some of the key points highlighted in the panel discussion included how ICM "doubled its organic slaughtering" in the first six months of 2026 vs 2025, according to James Smyth.

He added: "It's moving in the right direction."

While Smyth hailed the rise in organic lamb supplies as a positive for the sector, he said also warned:

"You have no idea, even from a conventional point of view, from an organic perspective, when you're going with specialised product, you do need the information."

Michael Holmes highlighted to the panel that he believes the amount of organically produced livestock that are not being finished by organic farmers "is a concern" for the sector.

The event drew to a close with organic lamb served to all in attendance provided by ICM.

About the farm

Holmes' farm combines commonage land with enclosed grazing across both productive and more challenging land types.

Since entering the Organic Farming Scheme in 2023, he has successfully adapted to the system, overcoming challenges such as sourcing organic feed and controlling weeds.

In 2025, Holmes finished all his lambs organically through ICM.

The majority of his lambs were finished from grass with the remainder supplemented using organic concentrates and hay produced on the farm.