Weather is heaping pressure on farmers

The President of the Ulster Farmers’ Union has said that farmers across the North have been left ‘scratching their heads’ following the recent spell of inclement and devastating weather.

Following June, which was one of the driest and warmest on record in Ireland, farmers have been left frustrated by July which has saw fields flooded and animals forced to take shelter due to the heavy rain.

David Brown admits that it is ‘very disappointing’ that the agriculture sector is now suffering due to the weather.

“Farmers probably have an obsession with the weather forecast now; checking the forecast more than daily. We can cope with 60 millimetres of rain, but it’s the extremes that come in those short bursts which floods fields.

“That water has subsided now, but it’s hard to farm in those kind of extremes.”

He also admits that the weather is causing financial implications for farmers in Tyrone and across the North.

“The animals that go into the shed are currently being fed round bales (of hay),” the UFU chief explained.

“The low cost time of year for this farm is when they’re out grazing in the field. That’s something we look forward to and the seasonality of farming, but that has been broken this year.

“When we took the first (silage) cut off around May 18, it was really beautiful. They were perfect conditions, but this is not what you would wish at the minute,” he added.

David is thankful for small mercies though and he extends his thoughts to the people of Castlederg who were recently left devastated by the flash flooding.

“While my fields are flooded, I appreciate that there are other people whose homes and properties have been flooded and that’s a very difficult thing to face.”