Awards for top grassland farmers - Kilkenny Farming

Overall Winner of the Sustainable Grassland Farmer of the Year 2023 is Patrick O’Neill from County Longford.

Kilkenny was also mentioned among the winners with a Kildalton College student, Ronan Carroll, topping the student category.

The Sustainable Grassland Farmer of the Year award is now in its seventh year and recognises the best grassland farmers in the country who are growing and utilising more grass on their farms.

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue T.D. presented the Sustainable Grassland Farmer of the year awards, at the Teagasc Ballyhaise Agricultural College.

The awards are supported by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with an overall prize fund of €33,000.
The minister congratulated all of the winners on their grassland awards. “You are a credit to your families and to the agri sector. I congratulate you all for being here today and well done to the overall winner Patrick O’Neill and his family. You can all be really proud of your achievements.”

The Sustainable Grassland Farmer of the Year awards are part of the Teagasc Grass10 Campaign which is supported by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Teagasc, AIB, FBD, Grassland Agro and the Irish Farmers Journal. The Grass10 programme has placed an ongoing focus on improving nutrient management and efficiency on farms and clover establishment and its management.

Winners
Joint winner of the student category was Ronan Carroll. From Tipperary he is a student at Kildalton Agricultural College in Piltown. He won alongside Mark Phillips from Ballyhaise College.
Farmer Category Winners
Patrick O’Neill, County Longford. Dairy Category.
William Gilmore, County Galway. Drystock Category.
Evan Hunt, County Sligo. Young Farmer Category.
Kevin O’Hanlon, County Carlow. Organic Category.
Killian Brennan, County Cavan. Nutrient Management Category.
Michael Carroll, County Limerick. Nutrient Management Category.