‘It is important to recognise the actions of farmers’

At the recent Teagasc National Dairy Conference, director, Professor Frank O’Mara, said ‘it is important to recognise that the actions of farmers have had a big effect’ on the progress being made to reduce agriculture’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. These were found to have dropped by 4.6 per cent in 2023, and trends in quarter one of this year indicate a further drop of 2.4 per cent. 
Chief among these actions, Professor O'Mara said, are the reduction of 30 per cent in chemical nitrogen usage over the last two years and the switch to protected urea, with indications suggesting it made up about 27 per cent of straight nitrogen usage in 2024.
He also addressed the ongoing work in Teagasc on incorporating clover in grassland swards to reduce chemical nitrogen applications. “Clover is a big part of our advice to farmers who wish to reduce chemical nitrogen without impacting on pasture production," he said.
“Over the last 15 years or more, Teagasc has been researching the role of clover and, indeed, multi species swards, in dairy systems at Moorepark, Clonakilty, Ballyhaise, Solohead and Johnstown Castle. We now have a large bank of data accumulated on which to base our advice for farmers, from across different systems, sward types, soil types and agro-climatic conditions.
“To ensure we are getting the most from these data, and that our advice is consistent with the research, we are commissioning an external peer review of our work on clover and multi species swards. This will help to ensure we maximise the potential from our research programme and help to identify gaps where further research is required.”
Dr Áine Murray, a Teagasc researcher based at Moorepark, said: “Grazed grass remains the cheapest high-quality feed that can be offered to dairy cows. Achieving grazing targets will ensure that grazed grass intake is maximised in the diet. Stocking rates on farms should be set based on whole farm pasture growth in order for the farm system to be financially robust and self-sufficient for feed.”

Dr Patrick Forrestal, Teagasc researcher based at Johnstown Castle, spoke about the performance of different nitrogen fertiliser types in terms of grass growth. He said: “Across multiple sites and years, there was no difference in grass yield from using protected urea versus using CAN as the fertiliser nitrogen type. However, there tended to be a reduction in grass growth when using standard urea. Protected urea usage on farms reduces GHG emissions compared to CAN, and ammonia emissions compared to standard urea.”