Roscommon farmer is CellCheck Champion
Pictured at the 10th annual Animal Health Ireland CellCheck awards held in Killashee Hotel, Naas, County Kildare were David Graham, CEO Animal Health Ireland; Bernard and Cillian Kelly, Cell Check Champions; Michael Berkery, FBD Trust; Deirdre Divilly, Farm Relations Advisor, Arrabawn Co-op; James Lynch, Chaiperson, Animal Health Ireland, & Ronan Moran, Farm Relations Advisor, Arrabawn Co-op.
A County Roscommon farmer was named a CellCheck Champion at the Animal Health Ireland CellCheck Awards held in the Killashee Hotel, Nass.
Bernard Kelly and his family farm a mixed dairy and beef enterprise on 100 acres in Roscommon.
The awards recognise excellence achieved by Irish dairy farmers in herd health, specifically those that achieve a consistently low somatic cell count (SCC) in their dairy herds.
CellCheck is the national mastitis control programme. Coordinated by Animal Health Ireland, the programme works with dairy farmers and their service providers, to increase the awareness and capacity to manage and prevent mastitis in Irish herds. This delivers a healthier and more productive herd, which contributes to increased efficiency and profitability.
Five hundred dairy farmers from across the country with the lowest weighted annual average SCC for the previous year’s milk supply attended the FBD sponsored awards as winners. On the night one CellCheck Champion was identified from each of the 18 participating dairy processors with Bernard Kelly winning from the Arrabawn Co-op.
Speaking at the presentation of awards, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue TD said: “The CellCheck programme is an excellent initiative that has helped deliver substantial reductions in SCC across Ireland’s dairy herds. This has contributed to healthier herds and high-quality milk produced in a sustainable way. Importantly these awards recognise the dairy farmers that achieve this excellence on their farms, the benefits of which not only contribute to their bottom line through productivity but also underpins the high-quality characteristics of our dairy products that sees them exported to 130 markets globally.”
James Lynch, Chair of Animal Health Ireland, said: “The winners are exemplars of the benefits of Animal Health Ireland’s CellCheck programme. Their consistent use of milk recording has been a significant factor in helping them make the right decision on disease prevention and animal health."
