AN IRISH-OWNED agricultural company with interests in Argentina has been sold to Saudi Arabia’s largest food company for $83 million (€65 million).

Fondomonte was founded in 2006 by London-based investment manager Mark McLornan and Irish farm manager Jim McCarthy, with the aim of capitalising on the rise in global demand for food.

The investment company owns and operates three farms in Argentina, totalling more than 12,000 hectares, which focus on the production of crops such as maize, wheat and soya. Barley, sorghum and sunflower are also grown.

The shareholder base comprises Irish investors, primarily from the southeast of the country, as well as some private investors from the UK and corporate investors. The largest shareholder is Wexford-based agribusiness Cooney Furlong Grain Company. Continued

THERE WAS A significant rise in the number of people killed by accidents in the workplace last year,  with by far the largest number of accidents happening on farms.

New statistics from the Health and Safety Authority show a 15 per cent increase in deaths from workplace injuries, with 55 people killed in 2011 against 48 the previous year.

More than one-third of those were fatally injured while working on farms. Twenty-two of the deaths happened among people working in crop and animal production.

The HSA has recently launched a high-profile advertising campaign, urging farmers not to take risks while working and to be careful around high-powered machinery. Continued

The upward trend in registrations of new tractors continued during September
according to the most recent figures from the FTMTA Statistics Service.
The
56 new tractors registered in September is a more than 100% increase on the same
month of 2010. A total of 1,444 new units have been registered in the first nine
months of 2011 which is a 16% increase on the same period last year. A similar
level of registrations over the remaining quarter of the year to that seen in
2010 would bring the total for the year over 1,500 units. While this recovery is
welcomed it must be put in context with the average annual sales of tractors
over the last 20 years being in excess of 2,000 units. Even as recently as 2009
there were 1,748 new tractors registered and that will not be remembered as
great year for the farm machinery industry.
An interesting aside is that
1,744 used tractors were registered in the State in the seven months to the end
of July. A significant number of these were possibly machines that although in
the State for some time were previously unregistered and which were registered
in advance of the increase of the increase in the rate of VRT on tractors from
€50 to €200 on May 1^st.

Following on from the increased reports of sheep rustling, Irish Cattle and Sheep
Farmers’ Association (ICSA) National President, Gabriel Gilmartin, has called on the
Department of Agriculture to pay closer attention to distribution levels of tags to
sheep farmers.

“We have noticed a worrying and increasing trend of sheep being stolen out of fields
in recent times. The Department of Agriculture needs to be especially vigilant with
unusually high requests for sheep tags from someone not previously known to be an
active sheep farmer.

“It’s not unusual for an active farmer to go from 400 ewes to 600 ewes with
investment but it’s highly unlikely that someone with 12 or 13 ewes would increase
the flock to 200 or 300 in a season. Sheep cannot be sold or slaughtered without
tags so a request for a major increase in tags may have been made by an unscrupulous
farmer.

“Roadside butchers also need to be punished hard for their actions. There have been
a number of notable reports recently of sheep been butchered out and with the head
and offal left in the field. Lamb is valuable commodity and these people need to be
met with the full letter of the law where found guilty.

“Vigilance is the key to this issue both with the farmer and, more importantly, the
Department. The ICSA doesn’t want to hinder the growth of active and progressive
sheep farmers but unusually high requests for tags need to be doubled checked by
Department officials to ensure no foul play,” Mr. Gilmartin concluded.

At a recent trip to agri technica show in Germany it was good to see all the irish manufacturers represented,  Strong brand names like Keenan, Mchale, Tanco, Malone and  Hispec all stood proud amongst and ocean of brands. As we strolled through the vast halls of modern machinery we came to a stand displaying Blockcutters or better known in Ireland as sheargrabs, impressed by the display and size we approched the German sales representive  on the stand only to be told the implements where made in Ireland, Shocked we enquire more and discovered Rimach Engineering based in Wexford have been growing a large market for its products across Europe. The sales rep explained the brand is well know in Germany and is well known as a premium product line.

Heavy rains and atrocious ground conditions are severely hampering the potato
harvest in Co Donegal.

Some 80-90pc of the maincrop potato harvest remains in the ground as farmers
struggle to get machinery into fields.

In a normal year, the harvest would be at least 50pc completed at this
stage.

IFA potato chairman Charlie Doherty said the wet weather would severely cost
farmers in terms of additional fuel costs and damage to the soil. He added that
farmers would also have to hire extra machines to take advantage of any dry
spells.

“We’ve had so much rain that no-one is going to get into a field for at least
another week,” he said.

Caitriona Murphy

Irish Independent

ICSA president Gabriel Gilmartin has called for an extension to the slurry spreading
period to the end of the year.
“While we acknowledge the efforts of the Minister to secure an extension of two
weeks to the end of October the sad reality is that it has been of little benefit
due to the very bad weather over the last week.”

“We are again seeing the limitations of farming regulations based on inflexible
calendar dates. There are many farmers in bother with slurry and there will have to
be an understanding that they can’t get slurry out in wet weather.