Skip to content
Sign in
Artwork for The Beef Edge
Government

The Beef Edge

Teagasc

The Beef Edge is Teagasc’s podcast for all the latest news, information and advice for Irish beef farmers, presented by Catherine Egan.

Visit the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/beef/the-beef-edge-podcast/

Play
Open in
  • 23 episodes
  • Avg 22 min
  • English

Episodes 23

NewestOldestLongest
All3Unplayed3In progress0Played0
Counted on this page — what you have heard stays on this device, so it is not something the list can be paged by.
  • #341
    May 20 · 21 min

    Inside John Pringle’s Suckler-to-Beef System

    Future Beef Programme farmer, John Pringle from Co. Wicklow, joins this week's Beef Edge to give an insight into his suckler beef system finishing bulls at under 16 months, preparing for silage and the upcoming National Beef Open Day taking place on 29th May at 6:30pm. John details his sheep and beef enterprise and how the farm has evolved over the last number of decades. He describes the management of the bulls from weanling to finish on the farm and the plans for bulls being finished in 2026. The role of good health measures play an important factor in reducing stress and maintaining thrive. John is highly focused on efficiency and grass utilisation and describes how the system changed in recent years with improved utilisations, closing farm in the autumn and applying lime since joining the Future Beef programme. The plan is to harvest silage in the coming week with the target to make over 70 DMD. Breeding season has been going well so far and John has implemented a synchronisation protocol for the heifers for the second year in a row. The investment in sheep and cattle handling facilities along with a new shed has improved labour efficiency and health and safety on the farm. Join us on Friday, 29th May at 6:30pm for a Future Beef National Farm Walk on the farm of John Pringle, Kilacloran, Aughrim, Co. Wicklow. Eircode: Y14 PT99. For further details: FutureBeef Farm Walk - John Pringle - Teagasc | Agriculture and Food Development Authority For more episodes from the Beef Edge podcast, visit the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/thebeefedge Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com

  • #340
    May 12 · 20 min

    Derrypatrick Herd Update

    With breeding season under way, Teagasc researcher, Peter Doyle, joins this week’s show to give an update on the Derrypatrick herd. For more episodes from the Beef Edge podcast, visit the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/thebeefedge Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com

  • #339
    May 7 · 26 min

    Making Contract Rearing Pay: Lessons from Pat Joyce

    Pat Joyce from Co. Galway, who operates a contract heifer rearing system, and his Teagasc advisor, Charlie Devaney, join this week’s Beef Edge to give an overview of the farm and the steps that Pat takes to make good quality silage. Pat farms outside Williamstown in Co.Galway; having previously operated a suckling system, he changed in 2017 to contract rear heifers for a dairy farmer. This system has grown and expanded to over 100 heifers bring reared in recent years on two blocks of land. Maximising weight gain as cost efficiently as possible is key, Pat advises, and this is achieved on farm by increasing grass utilisation through an extensive paddock system. Breeding is a labour intensive part of the system with close observation of heifers on the home block used to detect heifers, along with tail paint and scratchcards. The am/pm rule is used for AI on the farm. This year Pat has installed SenseHub to aid heat detection on the outblock. Managing costs on the farm is very important especially making quality silage which is something Pat has focused on a lot on in recent years. Pat has also red clover on the farm and he discusses how it is managed so far this year and the plan for the year ahead. Plus, Pat highlights a few tips for any farmer considering going contract rearing. Local Teagasc advisor, Charlie Devaney, concludes with advice for farmers making silage this year, particularly where ground hasn’t been grazed. If you missed the recent Silage Webinar, watch it here: Gearing up for Silage 2026 - Webinar For more episodes from the Beef Edge podcast, visit the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/thebeefedge Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com

Showing 21–23 of 23 episodes