A report commissioned on the forced closure of the Teagasc research centre in Ballinamore, Co Leitrim, has concluded that closing and selling the farm will confer no significant financial gain on Teagasc. Seán Mac Connell, Agriculture Correspondent, reports.
The report was compiled by agricultural consultants Philip Farrelly & Company, of Carrick-on Shannon, Co Leitrim, for the Irish Farmers Association (IFA), and concluded that valuable research had been carried out there in the past and this could happen again.
Attempts to close down the station by the agriculture and food development authority in March were opposed by a local action group, which received the full support of the IFA president, Mr John Dillon.
Members of the Garda riot squad had been moved into Ballinamore to facilitate the movement of a pedigree dairy herd off the farm, but the protesters prevented this happening. Since then there has been an uneasy stand-off.
The Farrelly report said that in former years valuable research was carried out there which gained recognition at national and international levels.
The potential existed for this facility to make a valuable contribution in meeting the needs of farming communities in the most severely disadvantaged areas of the country into the future.
The report also said the closure might be interpreted as an abandonment of the farmers of the west of Ireland.
A recent study by Prof Gerry Boyle, of NUI Maynooth, has highlighted the exceptional high rate of return on investment achieved by Teagasc on agricultural research. It was felt that the research carried out at Ballinamore would measure up to the highest standards.
"Over recent years the facilities at Ballinamore have been upgraded through a substantial capital investment. A new herd of Montbeliarde cattle have been established at the farm. The director of the dairy production research centre at Moorepark has stated that Ballinamore is an integral part of the dairy research effort, and appointed a technician to take charge of the ongoing research. In addition, grass-growth monitoring is continuing with results being published," said the report.
"In 2002 the head of the dairy production research centre declared that the Ballinamore farm was now part of the research division of Teagasc. He went on to state that the farm had been significantly upgraded in 2001, and would now form an integral part of the overall research programme for Teagasc.
"This was evidenced by the fact that a new herd of Montbeliarde cows was established on the farm during 2001.
"It was intended that technologies and dairy production developed at Moorepark would be tested at Ballinamore, that the information from Ballinamore would form part of the larger database from research farms and the farm would be used as a local/ demonstration farm. In addition it was proposed that open days would be held on the farm."
It estimated that Teagasc could receive a once-off €400,000 for the farm.
The report is being studied by the IFA's national executive.