Irish Dairy Board Dairy Macra stockjudging champions selected at IHFA Open Day

The national final of the 2009 Macra na Feirme Dairy Stockjudging competition, kindly sponsored by the Irish Dairy Board, took place last week at the Irish Holstein Friesian Association Open Day in Drogheda Co. Louth.

First prize in the senior competition went to Patrick Deasy from Carbery , while the Under-23 competition was won by John O’Connor from Avondhu . Runners-up were Michael Murphy from Wexford (Senior event) and Ann Buckley from Carbery (Under-23 event).

The dairy stockjudging competition takes the form of an academic test followed by the score-marking in order of merit of a pen of heifers and a pen of cows. Competitors are also interviewed on their overall grading of the animals and must answer questions on the technical aspects of dairy farming.

Speaking at the event, Macra na Feirme, National President, Michael Gowing, thanked the Irish Dairy Board for their continued support, and congratulated both competitors and judges for their part in the outstanding competition. He also emphasised the importance of the competition and said:

“The dairy stockjudging competition offers a great opportunity for young farmers to become skilled at assessing livestock and prepares them for the actual job of buying and selling farm animals. Stockjudging also broadens the young farmers’ knowledge of new developments in stock breeding, husbandry and disease control.”