The Southern Star and Celtic Ross Hotel West Cork Farming Awards Farming Family Winners are the Cullinane, Deasy, O'Donovan and Hurley families.
Farming Family Award sponsored by
A PILOT scheme pioneered by four West Cork farming families designed to reconnect primary and secondary school students with the agri sector through farm visits, has been such a phenomenal success that it’s set to expand.
The brainchild of John and Veronica Cullinane in Ballineen, Sean and Fiona Deasy in Timoleague, Denis and Colette O’Donovan in Glandore, and John and Marie Hurley in Dunmanway, they are set to be joined by four more local families this year to expand the network.
Their ultimate aim is for every pupil in West Cork to have an opportunity to visit a family-run dairy farm, and with the support of Carbery Group and the four West Cork co-ops, Barryroe, Bandon, Drinagh and Lisavaird, they’re well placed to do that.
The original idea came from third-generation farmer John Cullinane who said it was a concept he had been mulling over for several years.
‘For a while I’ve felt a disconnect between people who live rurally with what we do on our farms and I felt that the story of the family dairy farm wasn’t being heard,’ he said. By ‘story’, he means the involvement of multi-generations on the farm, the sustainable focus behind everything that’s done on farms and the commitment to the environment.
‘Lots of youngsters don’t even associate cheese and milk with cows, and when they think of a farm they tend to think more of a petting farm,’ he said.
With that in mind, he approached the three other families who were all known to each other and of a similar mindset, and in turn they approached Carbery, who couldn’t have been more supportive.
Eight schools had a chance to avail of visits last year – each family hosted local national school pupils and a TY class – and the engagement and feedback was incredible.
Prior to the visit, each school received a pack and a video introduction to the farmer that was hosting them courtesy of Carbery, along with information about the farm, and farming in general and links to other relevant resources.
West Cork’s four local co-ops covered the cost of students’ transport to the farm in their area, and each had a milk lorry in the yards for a demonstration on the day.
‘For many of the students we met, it was their first time on a farm,’ said John, who was supported on the visits by his wife Veronica, son Eoin, and daughters Aoife and Laura.
Soil health, biodiversity, clover and animal welfare were all discussed in lively exchanges. The emphasis, John pointed out, was not just on ‘showing’ but on learning and bringing the farm to life. It was about explaining in a very practical way the farm to fork model, or the journey from the soil, the grass, the cow, the milking, the collection, the processing, the final product, the customer.
‘There was a particular focus on the uniqueness of the Irish dairy farming model, on the use of science and technology in farming, on farmers as custodians of animals and of land, and of sustainable farming practices. Students also received goody bags to remember their visit, and a cheese tasting of our products,’ explained Louse Kelly of Carbery.
John is hugely passionate about the scheme – everyone involved is, including Sean Deasy, from Ahafore, Timoleague who said he didn’t hesitate to get involved, motivated by concerns that rural dwellers no longer understand farming.
‘It was about addressing that but also to inform TY students of the various agri careers that are out there and the pathways to accessing them,’ he said.
With that in mind, assistant principal Karen O’Connell from Darrara Ag college was present for the TY visits, which was of huge value.
‘It was a really positive experience and I was surprised at the engagement from the students. It was mutually beneficial too as it was energising and motivating to host the visits,’ added Sean.
Denis O’Donovan, Glandore said he felt the project was a way to give something back, but also ‘to help bridge a disconnect’ in rural communities.
‘We hosted Glandore NS and 90% of them had never been on a farm. We also had TY students from Rosscarbery and when they went into the pit in the parlour they couldn’t get over the fact that the milk was warm coming from the cow, and that we had to cool it as quickly as possible. Lisavaird Co-op had a milk lorry there and there were blown away by all the science on board and the testing being done – all stuff that we take for granted. We’re not about selling anything, it’s just straight talking and telling it like it is. It’s really exciting that we’re branching out with more families this year and our vision is that every young person in the Carbery area will have a chance to get out on a farm.’
Principal of Glandore NS Ríona Murray said the visit her pupils enjoyed to Denis and Colette’s farm was a huge success.
‘The children’s level of engagement on the day was incredible due to the enthusiasm created by Denis and Colette’s passion. The family element of farming was evident with Denis’s parents taking a break from their jobs to visit the children too.
‘The children discussed career opportunities after their visit and it certainly created a positive impression of agriculture and the various industries that support the sector,’ she said.
‘There are children in my classroom who hope to work in the agricultural sector in the future and this experience helped them to envisage this as well as opening up the sector to children who may not have considered the industries that would not be in existence without farming, particularly dairying,’ she added.
John Hurley, Dunmanway described it as an ‘unbelievable’ experience.
‘We hosted the local boys NS and only one of them had anything to do with agriculture which was surprising given our relatively rural community. More and more people seem to be a generation removed from agriculture and that connection is being lost,’ he said.
John gave his students the chance to plant part of a hedge, which students on this year’s visit added to.
‘The story of what we’re doing, and our commitment as custodians of the land isn’t understood, which is what we want to change.’
Carbery Group are pleased to continue to be associated with the visits.
‘The campaign made an extremely positive contribution to the dairy industry as a whole. Firstly, it showcased farming as a progressive, desirable career choice for students who may not previously have considered it.
‘Secondly, it influenced and informed students about the Irish dairy farming model, a demographic that is most susceptible about the recent information around dairy environmental impacts and nutritional value,’ said Louise Kelly.
‘It reconnected schools and communities with the local farming sector, and reminded children, teachers and parents of the central role that farming and food production plays in West Cork and nationally. It demonstrated in a very practical way the focus on sustainability, animal welfare and innovation that is central to most Irish farms. It connected students with farming and the food on their supermarket shelves or tables and it also educated students about the role of Carbery in the local community and opportunities to work in the sector.’
The four families say they are proud to win this year’s Southern Star’s Farming Family Award which they said was welcome recognition for the programme.
Why we support West Cork farming
‘Cultivate’ is the credit unions’ national farm finance brand. Bantry and Access Credit Unions have been offering Cultivate loans for some years now.
And this year we were delighted to be joined by Macroom Credit Union.
Between us, we have six local offices in Bandon, Bantry, Castletownbere, Macroom, Schull and Skibbereen.
Nationally, Cultivate is now available through a network of over 170 credit union offices.
We are delighted to continue our association with West Cork Farming Awards.
And we are pleased to sponsor the Farming Family award again this year for the third year running.
Farming is part of the fabric of West Cork. And the family farm is its bedrock. Last year this award was won by the O’Donovan family from Clonakilty.
They epitomised all that is good about West Cork farming. Including a willingness to diversify to ensure the family farm remains viable, by setting up Clonakilty Glamping. We look forward to seeing who wins this year’s Farming Family award.
Credit unions are rooted in our communities. We employ local people to deliver local services to local communities.
We go the extra mile. The credit union mantra is: Keep it Local, Keep it Personal, Keep it Simple. These characteristics have always been the hallmarks of the service provided by credit unions in the personal lending market. They have led to the Irish people having a great trust in credit unions. For 10 years in a row now, credit unions have been voted number one for customer experience in the CXi Ireland Customer Experience Report.
Credit unions have brought these values into our growing relationship with farmers through Cultivate.
Nothing is more important to credit unions than relationships. Because credit unions are financial co-ops, we at Access, Bantry and Macroom Credit Unions value more than anything our relationship with our members – the people of West Cork.
That’s why we are so delighted to continue to sponsor the West Cork Farming Awards. Kudos too to The Southern Star, the Celtic Ross Hotel, Ifac and all the other sponsors of the West Cork Farming Awards.
