This article is from page 34 of the 2007-11-06 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 34 JPG
COUNTY Clare Teagasc last week completed a major overhaul of its farm advisory service in the coun- ty and has now introduced a new structure to help deliver a_ better service to existing and new farmer ESN ie
The new advisory programme will now be organised around four pro- eramme areas, with a renewed em- phasis on the business and technology programme. The other programme areas are good farm practice, rural development and adult training and life-long learning.
The advisory service in County Clare is managed by Gerard Mac-
Mahon, who has 20 agricultural advisers working from four offices in Ennis, Ennistymon, Kilrush and Scariff and the support of six admin- istration staff.
MacMahon believes that the serv- ice will be in a stronger position to service farmers’ demands and that by bringing the Teagasc resources into dedicated teams, Teagasc can provide a more specialised sharper service to farmer customers.
“Much of our work in recent years has been dominated by schemes and services with high levels of demand from our farmer clients for schemes such as the Farm Improvement Scheme, REPS, Single Farm Pay- ment scheme and resolving associ-
ated problems,’ he said. “We will continue to provide this service, but a dedicated team of business and tech- nology advisors are now in place and will work closely with farmers who want to improve technical perform- ance by adopting the best technology that 1s emerging from our research Oak ee
Those involved in the core main- stream farm enterprises can now benefit from the knowledge of Tea- gasc’s dedicated business and tech- nology advisors. Their Good Farm Practice team know the intricacies of the various support schemes and REPS.
Over half of ‘Teagasc’s clients participate in REPS and with REPS4
commencing and the introduction of the nitrates derogation, this percent- age will increase.
Teagasc can also now provide advice on all enterprises including many of the alternative farm enterprises. Its specialised rural development advi- sors will provide the facts for you to consider the alternatives that are available.
A fully comprehensive range of training courses are also available to help farmers to improve their skills for running their businesses more efficiently and effectively.
These include courses on REPS, financial management, computer skills, farm safety, farm business and animal and crop production.