A Limerick leader

“We interviewed for three categories and every one of the participants should be extremely proud to be on the final list,” comments Elaine. “What really stood out was their commitment. They outlined exactly what they are doing on their farms, they highlighted the impact their families have had on their lives, and the support they are receiving in developing their careers in agriculture. Many of them are already Macra members and we will encourage all of them to join and participate in the organisation." 

On the sidelines

Though currently living in Kilkenny, Elaine is a Kilmallock woman and, naturally, is very proud of the recent achievements of Limerick hurling: “The senior team has elevated GAA in Limerick. You can see it at underage levels where participation and interest have soared on the success of the seniors,” said Elaine.
Sport is a key aspect of her life outside of Macra. As a physiotherapist, she can be found on the sidelines most weekends: “Mostly with Kilkenny camogie at the moment, so it’s great to be with them. Some of the hurling clubs around the county of Kilkenny use my services so you can find me on any sideline. I really love working with rural clubs. They understand the essence of Macra and the workload I have.” 

A broad perspective

Elaine has a strong farming and agri-sector background but it is the sum of several parts that gives her a broad skillset, and perspective, to be able to perform effectively in the Macra role: “I come from a farm with a suckler herd as well as a calf-to-beef enterprise. In addition, we have an agricultural-engineering company which gives me a very broad perspective on Irish agriculture, far broader, I think than if I were only involved in frontline farming. It really does stand to me. For a short period, I did work for a TD and that has given me an understanding of how politics works and has helped in our efforts lobbying on behalf of young farmers and rural young people generally.”

Resilience theme

In early March, Macra coordinated with the Agricultural Science Association (ASA) to highlight the importance of resilience. They organised a charity event, titled Resilient Industry: Adapting to Change: “It was something I wanted to do when I took over as national president of Macra. We organised panel discussions around a lunch event to raise funds for Breast Cancer Awareness. The overall theme was resilience in the agri-industry and adapting to change. One panel featured women with very different backgrounds and careers, each providing personal experience of resilience in their lives from a cancer survivor to a nun working in South Sudan, one of the newest independent countries on the planet and with many social, structural and economic challenges, especially for women.”

Eighty and counting

Macra appears to be in good health as it reaches 80, according to Elaine, and there are plans to mark that milestone in the coming months: “We have had a lot of people signing up in the past year and that is very reassuring. It just shows that after 80 years, Macra still has so much to offer young people today. We still place huge emphasis on our club structures, and this will be seen in our various events to mark our 80th birthday this year.
“We’re doing a series of patron events, for instance, to allow past members to meet and reconnect. There’s going to be one of them in each region. We have a strategy to revive the field evenings that many former members would remember with fondness. Importantly, we need to give the clubs the opportunity to celebrate. Many of them, including my own, have been active for decades right back to the foundation of Macra.”

Skillnet

Macra continues to have strong developmental and training programmes and it has a close alliance with Skillnet, which may not be so well known, Elaine says: “Many people aren’t aware of our close association with Skillnet. It provides subsidised training to our members and we allow access to non-members as well. It provides upskilling for participants with everything from hoof care and DIY AI, to welding and first aid catered for. We also organise succession workshops under Skillnet and the system is flexible enough that if there is demand for a particular course, we can develop a programme and provide it. Essentially, if the members come to us with an idea of a course and if it’s possible for us to run, we will make it happen at a subsidised cost. It provides opportunities that I would encourage people to utilise a lot more.” 

Young farmer focus

Macra retains a firm focus on pursuing improvements for young farmers and when asked about commitments made by agriculture minister, Charlie McConalogue to the organisation in recent years, she comments: “We did come out heavy around greater supports for farm succession. The minister has come up short of our expectations and we will continue to put pressure on him and his political colleagues to live up to commitments around our proposals for farm succession. The demographics in farming are not healthy. Farmers are an ageing population. Only seven per cent of farmers in Ireland are under the age of 35, which is very worrying.
“It’s young farmers that are going to be keep farming vibrant and rural Ireland alive. If we don’t have farmers, we don’t have rural communities, we don’t have people working the land, we don’t have people going to the local shop, we don’t have people utilising the local post office. We need more young people involved in farming, and our lobbying makes Macra appealing to young people who appreciate what we are doing. There are too many restrictions on young people hoping to make a career in farming. Apart from the increasingly restrictive regulatory system around farming, there are serial objections to farm developments, often from people not within 100 miles of the development. It’s something we have highlighted at the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine. While there are concessions on grant aids for young farmers, much more needs to be done. “Previously we had a new entrant and retirement package to support succession. We want to see a comprehensive package put in place that will deliver results and we will continue to work to that end.” 

Elaine’s wish list

Macra’s Land Mobility Service continues to operate, and Elaine emphasises the need for additional funding to allow it to encourage generational land transition: “We hope that Minister McConalogue commits to keeping the service funded because it is an essential part of the whole succession theme. The minister said he couldn’t imagine any other organisation running the Land Mobility Service, so it baffles me that the funding isn’t there, secured for several years, so that the service can plan for the long term.”
Elaine comments on the final year of her presidency: “I’m really looking forward to the next 12 months. Whoever thought we’d have an organisation in its 80th year with a president from one of its founding clubs? I look forward to celebrating it, and I truly hope we finally have success with succession.”