The Southern Star and Celtic Ross Hotel West Cork Farming Awards April monthly winner is Bó Bainne Úr, Clonakilty.
Farming Family Award sponsored by
MICHAEL Cahalane was watching a YouTube clip of a UK farmer advertising a milk vending machine he had in his yard when he had his lightbulb moment.
‘It was a video by Tom Pemberton and I remember being really struck by the idea, and asking myself “Why can’t I do that?”.’
One very valid reason would have been that he’s a dad-of-three, and a dairy farmer with 300 cows, so by most people’s standards it would have been understandable if the idea fell by the wayside.
But undeterred, four and a half years later, Michael and his wife Sally Kearney launched Bó Bainne Úr, a mobile milk truck that operates from a specially-converted horsebox.
A familiar sight in locations around West Cork, they celebrated their first year in business in February, and are planning on expanding and having a Bó Bainne van on the road in the coming weeks.
Michael brought his novel idea to life with help from a company called Unison in Limerick.
‘I rang them and told them my vision. Six months later they got back to me and together we came up with a modular dairy unit – a nine-metre prefabricated unit which I have behind our house which pasteurises milk from my Jersey cows, which then goes into the vending machine.’
There were some modifications to be done along the way to comply with Dept of Agriculture regulations for dairy production, but Bó Bainne Úr now sells at four markets each week, Clonakilty, Bandon, Bishopstown and Ballincollig and operating on a fully automated basis, parks at various locations around Clonakilty.
Here’s how it works: users simply choose a bottle if they need to, and then place the bottle in the door of the milk machine, choose if you want a litre or 500mls, tap or pay coins and then wait for the milk to fill.
The cows love it too!
For those with a sweet tooth, there’s the option of choosing a syrup flavour to add to the milk, with flavours like chocolate, Nutella, and Kinder Bueno.
When the bottle is taken out, the machine automatically cleans for the next user. Such a simple but clever idea!
Michael has been milking cows all his life but in recent year was driven by a desire to diversify.
‘I grew up on a farm in Ballymacowen, near Clonakilty and would have done a lot of relief milking as a youngster. After school I went to Darrara Agricultural College and after that I managed a few different farms,’ he said.
Highly ambitious, he wasn’t going to let not owning his own land stand in his way. Over a seven year period he grew his herd from zero to 300, renting land in his locality.
‘I’m milking on three separate blocks, and employ three people to milk in each location. I have two herds: a purebred Jersey herd and a cross-bred Jersey.
‘One farm is used exclusively to supply Irish Yogurts in Clonakilty who make Dunnes Stores Simply Better Irish Jersey Milk,’ he said.
Sally and Michael in front of their milk van.
He chose Jersey cows deliberately for two reasons: ‘They produce milk that’s 18% higher in protein compared to other cow breeds. Jersey milk also contains A2 proteins which have anti-inflammatory properties and make our milk easier to digest, especially for those who are lactose intolerant.
‘But they’re also a very durable animal for a large scale operation like mine. Irish dairy farms would typically be on one block, but I need a cow that can do a lot of the work themselves, and are easily managed,’ he said.
‘I take care of pretty much everything else outside that from calving, feeding etc,’ he said.
He calves in two blocks: from February 1st to April 10th and then from mid-September to November. He also uses technology where he can to provide remote back up: ‘I use cow manager tags which are basically like FitBits on the cow’s ear which tells me via an app if she’s sick, not eating, in heat etc.’
With so much going on already, what’s the motivation for the dad-of-three to not just continue Bó Bainne but to grow it?
‘In my heart of hearts I feel that farming in this country is in trouble. Once upon a time it was such an enjoyable way to make a living but now there’s so many rules and regulations that I think could potentially destroy Irish agriculture, and discourage young people from getting involved. The bottom line is that I think we’re easy targets in the climate debate so I felt it was important to diversify,’ he said.
As well as that, Michael isn’t happy that farmers are required to be ‘price takers.’
‘With my business I can sell my produce directly and get a price that I think is fair and right for it and the feedback has been brilliant. It’s also been a good way to share the story of how milk is produced and the work that goes into it, which a surprising amount of people don’t know.’
A year in business, with expansion plans underway, what’s his advice to a farmer thinking of diversifying: ‘Make a plan and stick to it. Bainne Bó was a long time in the pipeline but Sally and I kept going and we got there in the end. You must also be 110% sure you are committed because it’s not going to be an easy road,’ he said.
Long term, Michael plans to reduce his herd to 80 – he’s not hopeful Ireland will retain its derogation – and concentrate more on the business which he’s thoroughly enjoying.
‘An unexpected benefit of Bainne Bó has been getting to meet so many new people. I didn’t realise how isolating farming was before this – you tend to do the same thing and meet the same people all the time. It’s been really energising meeting so many new faces and hearing new stories,’ he said, adding that mental health was something that farmers need to take care of. He’s always been conscious of a work life balance.
Michael worked with a company in Limerick to bring his vision to life.(Photo: Nicola Rae)
‘At different times of the year it’s non-stop, seven days a week, but once the calving and breeding is finished I do manage to take a bit of a break!’ he said.
‘I built up good habits over the years too as Sally and the kids only moved from Cork city to West Cork six years ago – we built a house in the middle of everything.
So I always made a point of being finished by 5.30pm to get to Cork for dinner at least three times a week and now we all make a point to sit down together for dinner. I’d be up by 6am but I’m a believer in an early finish when I can to make time for family,’ he said.
And Bó Bainne has been a family affair from the start. Sally took a career break as a family support worker to get things up and running with children Madeleine, 26, Sara, 14 and Dennis, 11 all playing a vital role.
Winning The Southern Star farming award has made it all worthwhile, said Michael.
‘It’s superb recognition for a start-up like ours and is great motivation to keep moving forward,’ he said.
