Category: 2017 Archive

 The National Ploughing Championships 2017 will take place from Tuesday September 19^h to Thursday September 21^st in Screggan, Tullamore Co. Offaly. FRS have lots to offer visitors from jobs to live mobile app and chainsaw demonstrations, which will be shown on a big screen, and of course a cup of tea with a seat.

FARM JOBS

FRS Farm Relief Services are running a recruitment drive on their stand this year, with training and job opportunities for farm workers and in particular milkers. You can talk to FRS staff about the roles and apply online there and then for the many nationwide positions. There are full-time and part-time opportunities offering flexibility, competitive rates, training, experience and career progression. FRS operators will share their own experiences. Experienced milkers are invited to apply, but training is available for candidates who show the right attitude and enthusiasm to upskill. For more information visit www.frsfarmrelief.ie/careers

SEE HERDWATCH FOR YOURSELF

Meet the Herdwatch team to get a demonstration and special offers of the award winning App used by over 6,000 farmers to save time and money and lessen the burden of compliance paperwork. You can sign up for a free trial or the special ploughing offer on the FRS stand or at the Innovation Arena, where Herdwatch is a nominated innovation finalist. The Herdwatch team, along with their mascot ‘Herdie’, invite you to see Herdwatch for yourself. www.herdwatch.ie

CHAINSAW DEMONSTRATIONS

FRS Training will be launching their suite of essential chainsaw safety courses with live demonstrations throughout the three days, come along for top tips and to find out about the new courses which include tree felling, which will be demonstrated live on the big screen.

TYING OFF FENCING DEMONSTRATIONS

If you are interested in fencing, but would like a few tips from the experts, the FRS Fencing team will be instilling their know-how and demonstrating how to tie off wire and to fence correctly at the FRS stand. Visitors also have the chance to win €500 worth of Tinsley wire products.

Visit FRS Farm Relief, FRS Fencing, FRS Training and Herdwatch on Stand 241, Row 10. Go to www.facebook.com/frsnetwork for more information, competitions and videos.

The NDC will be creating an exciting festival theme at this year’s Ploughing championships to launch our new campaign – The Complete Natural. We have an interesting programme of events, cooking demos, celebrities, healthcare experts and sports stars at our stand over the three days.

We will start each day the Complete Natural way with “Sunrise Yoga” sessions happening the stand each morning. Our yoga experts will take you through some easy stretches and moves to start the day off well. You can then refresh yourselves with a healthy smoothie at our onsite Milk Bar.

Louis Walsh will be at the stand on Day 1 fresh from filming the Judges Houses slot on X Factor and will discuss how he is looking for a Complete Natural talent on the show this year, he may even scout at Ploughing for some hidden talent!!

DJ, Presenter and model Vogue Williams will be stepping into her wellies and sharing her tips on how she keeps herself in shape with healthy eating and exercise.

Foodie Heaven – We have a full demo kitchen with seating for the three days with Ireland’s most versatile chef, Brian McDermott as our resident chef cooking up some delicious dishes for the crowds. He will be joined by our visiting chefs including Irish Chef Clodagh McKenna and Currabinny aka Snapchat Star James Kavanagh and his partner and chef William Murray.

Your Health – Ask the Expert – We are delighted to have a number of healthcare experts and surgeons from our partners at Cappagh Hospital this year. They will be on hand to offer advice on bone health and avoiding fracture with real life X-rays to explain common breaks and fractures.

Co-op Marketplace – As always, we will have a showcase of the best of Irish dairy produce from our Co-Ops with sampling throughout the three days.

Quality Milk Awards – We will showcase the 14 finalists for this year’s Quality Milk Awards with videos and photography from this year’s contenders.

The Complete Natural sampling Van – Bring yourself back to the festival vibe with our Milk Bar Van serving delicious fruit smoothies throughout the day.

Sports and Performance will be theme throughout the three days with our NDC experts. Irish athlete Derval O’Rourke will discuss the importance of dairy for fitness along with Karl Henry, one of Ireland’s most recognised personal trainers. Dr Sharon Madigan, Head of Performance Nutrition, Sport Ireland Institute will be discussing the importance of good nutrition with some of Ireland’s top athletes joined by Dr Pat O’Neill medical consultant in orthopedic and sports medicine.

Running Order of Guests and Events

Day 1
Tuesday 19th September
Louis Walsh
Vogue Williams
Pat O’Neill – Orthopaedic surgeon former player and manager of the Dublin Gaelic football team

Day 2
Irish Chef Clodagh McKenna
Derval O’Rourke – Ex Irish Olympian and Fit Foodie
Cappagh Health Experts

Day 3
Karl Henry – RTE Operation Transformation
Currabinny – James Kavanagh and William Murray
Sharon Madigan – Head of Performance Nutrition – Sport Ireland Institute

The NDC has members of its nutrition team available to help with questions about the honest to goodness role of dairy in our diet throughout our life-stages.

Macra na Feirme is set for its biggest ever Ploughing Championships this year at Screggan, Co. Offaly. We’ll be launching our inaugural Harry Ferguson Tractor Driver Safety Award where 60 young farmers (20 each day) will display their safe tractor driving ability to the crowd in the hope of being crowned the Macra na Feirme/ Harry Ferguson Tractor Driver Safety Award winner for 2017.

We will also introduce some of our candidates for the Macra na Feirme/FBD Young Farmer of the Year for 2017 as well as unveiling participants in our Macra na Feirme Young Farmer Skillnet Beef Sustainability Programme in association with Dawn Meats.

Of course we’ll also have some of the lighter side of the agriculture world on display at our stand, in the form of our Tractorpool Karaoke, if it works for James Corden on the streets of LA, there is no reason why it won’t work for Macra in the fields of Co.Offaly. Our special commemorative Macra na Feirme Croke Park GAA jerseys will also be on sale at our stand.

Finally, our annual Macra Ploughing Class competition in association with the National Ploughing Association will take place on Wednesday September 20^th at the Ploughing Championships.

Speaking about the upcoming championships Macra na Feirme President James Healy said,’ Like every year Macra will have a huge presence at the Ploughing Championships, it is one of the most important cultural events in the Irish calendar, worth over €35 million to the economy. We have some major attractions this year in the form of the Harry Ferguson Tractor Driver Safety Award which will continue to drive home the paramount importance of farm safety. Along with that, we will also be introducing the brightest talents in the agriculture sector through our candidates for the Macra na Feirme/FBD Young Farmer of the Year as well as our applicants for the Macra na Feirme Young Farmer Skillnet Beef Sustainabilty Programme. We are very much looking forward to the three days and can’t wait to welcome the public to our stand.’