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MANY Clare farmers will be forced out of the beef sector unless they receive a sustainable margin for their produce, according to Clare farmer and Chairperson of ICMSA’s Beef and Cattle Committee, Martin McMahon.

The O’Callaghan’s Mills man claimed last week that this will lead to many markets being closed off to Irish beef in the future.

He has called for an immediate rise in the beef prices as the only solution to the current problem.

At current prices, farmers fattening cattle are cross-subsidising that prac- tice with their Single Farm Payment

“This was the economics of the madhouse and farmers will simply cease to make that cross-subsidy and exit beef altogether,” he said.

“Beef production must be made viable in its own right and that demanded an immediate rise in cat- tle prices from the meat factories. Fattening cattle is currently a loss- making business and the whole fu- ture of this sector was now in ‘red alert’ territory.

“The facts of the situation are that

beef prices are now 16.8c/kg below what they were in October 2006 — that 1s equivalent to €60 per head. “We would also point out that an Irish steer is currently making €130 per head less than the same animal in the UK, while at the same time feed and other costs have also risen substantially during this period. “Given the gap in Irish and UK prices, it is quite clear that factories can pay more for cattle and if that means that meat processors must go to the retailers for increased returns, then that 1s what must happen if we are to truly reflect the economics

of beef production,’ Mr McMahon added.

“Our beef processors and retail- ers have a decision to make now on the future of our beef sector — raise prices and maintain their supply of cattle or do absolutely nothing and eliminate their 12 months’ supply of cattle.

“It’s “make-your-mind-up’ time on the future of the Irish beef sector. There is scope for increased prices at the present time and factories must immediately raise prices in order to secure the future of the Irish beef sector.”

A HAPPY mixture of family values and the traditional Irish welcome were the driving force behind Lisdoonvarna woman Martina Shelly being awarded the prestigious Irish Host of the Year by the Georgina GF: Tae} o)oro dm Cie b re (on

Martina, who owns and operates Sheedy’s four-star hotel with her husband John, picked up the prestig- ious award at a ceremony in Dublin IETS MW iere) .@

This is the latest in a series of awards for Sheedy’s Hotel, which was awarded Best Breakfast in Mun- ster by the guide two years ago and

the Double Rosette from the AA. “They are really looking for the traditional Irish welcome. For something personal with an attention to detail. [really would care about the stay of the guest, to make sure that they are greeted properly and have a proper welcome,’ said Martina. “Because it is a family business,

it all reflects back on me. I will be there in the afternoon and I will be there in the evening to make sure that everything is going well. I’d say if someone didn’t enjoy their stay I’d nearly take it personally.

“It is a very respected guide and a lot of people use it as their travelling bible. You don’t pay to go into this guide and it is a great one for us to win because it emphasises the qual- ity of the service we give.

“It’s great for the town of Lisdoonvarna. It reminds the minds of the people in Dublin that there is a lot going on down here. They might only think of Lisdoonvarna in terms of the Matchmaking festival that takes place.”

The hotel has been in John’s fam- ily for four generations and has developed along with the town around Lisdoonvarna’s famous spa wells. “It was one of the very old houses in the village. It started off as a thatched cottage and then it was expanded into three thatched cot- tages when they found the spa wells, which were let out for the summer. That was my great-grandparents,’ said John, who was the head chef at Ashford Castle.

“My grandparents did further building work and then my own father knocked a section and built on pneKO uc hee-BEtE

“It’s been knocked and rebuilt on a number of occasions over the years. It had 30 bedrooms at one stage and now we have 11.

“The rooms have been getting bigger and bigger through the years as standards have gotten higher and ab hedatss

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.

NORTH Clare’s BurrenLIFE Project (BLP) is once again reaching out to the farmers of the region, looking for their expert input and experience of how this delicate environment should be managed.

The BLP, which is Ireland’s first major partnership-based farming- for-conservation project, will host a series of meetings across the Burren during the month of November.

The meetings will provide informa- tion on the project to the wider farm-

ing community and update them on the work completed by the BLP over the past three years.

“We will discuss aspects such as feeding and grazing and talk about best practices in terms of farm man- agement. A good example of this is that we have spent a lot of money on programmes for the construction and upkeep of internal farm walls,” said Mr Ruairi O Conchutir, Finance & Operations Officer of the BLP.

‘There is a whole range of practical measures that farmers themselves will find useful and beneficial. The

most important aspect of the meet- ings is to get feedback from farm- ers, their opinion of the project and where it is at and, more importantly, their opinion of where it is going.”

Meetings will be hosted in Bal- lyvaughan’s Hylands Hotel, this evening, November 6; Doolin’s Micko Russell Centre on Wednes- day November 7; Cassidy’s in Car- ron next Tuesday, November 13 and the in the Community Hall in Tubber on Wednesday, November 14. Each meetings will begin at 8pm and last for one hour.

“The last round of meetings was at the start of the project. We are more than half-way through the project so we will be going back to the farmers with new information. We certainly have developed best practice guide- lines for scrub removal, for the treat- ment of scrub and the concentration of feed,’ said O Conchuir.

‘The most important aspect of this is the relevance of what we are do- ing for the farmers. We want to know what measures are beneficial, both for them as farmers and for the pro- tection of the Burren.”

JAMES Lafferty is widely known in ladies football circles in Clare.

A founder member of the county board in 1983, he served as secretary and treasurer in the past and was chairman until resigning a fortnight ago.

He informed the football board of his decision to resign on October 22, citing “personal and business diffi- culties” as his reasons.

Sources in ladies football in Clare have described his work at underage level as “hugely progressive”.

They also said he injected energy and dedication into the game in the county over a period of several years.

He managed the under-16 side which won the All-Ireland ‘B’ title

this year, that is set to receive a Civic Reception from Clare County Coun- cil next Monday.

He also managed the county’s un- der-14 side last year.

A statement issued to

THE thousands who descend on La- hinch each weekend to surf, swim or play golf will now have the protection of a newly installed defibrillator.

The defibrillator, which is located in the newly refurbished O’Looney’s Pub and Restaurant on the Lahi- nch Prom, was installed earlier this month after a series of local fund- raisers.

The north Clare branch of the Irish Red Cross in association with a local surf shop organised a surf- ing competition to raise the €3,000 needed to fund equipment and train- ing. Through the generosity of many local businesses and individuals the target was achieved.

“We went to all the business peo- ple in Lahinch looking for donations, anything, big and small. It is a com- munity defibrillator, it came about with some help from the Red Cross but it 1s something for all the com- munity. And it was the community itself that got this going,” said Selina O’Sullivan of the North Clare Red OKO

“We raised enough money from the surfing competition and local support for the defibrillator and training of twelve volunteers. Given the high in- cidence of heart disease and cardiac arrest in Ireland and the importance of Lahinch as a tourist destination, its a great asset to have the defibrilla- tor here in a central location.”

The North Clare Red Cross formed three years ago has a core group of around 15 members. Last month four members of the group qualified as instructors and are now in a position to train new members in-house.

“Now that we have qualified in- structors within our own group we can start running classes and bring- ing in anyone who is interested,’ evel ebeleCcre mu Yo) BUNT: E

“It’s strictly voluntary. It’s through our members that we have come as far as we have. We do need help and would love for more people to get in- volved.”

The Lahinch Community Defibril- lator Group needs new members.

For more information contact Selina at 086 3330233.

A special emergency number for the defibrillator has been set up at 087 6612002. However, remember firstly to call 112 to call activate Emergency Ambulance Service.

Cardiac arrest results in the death of approximately 18 people per day in Ireland or 6,400 per year. Early access to the Emergency Medical System (Dial 112), cardio pulmo-

nary resuscitation (CPR) and access to defibrillation can help change this Statistic.

THE book of evidence in the case of two people charged with conspiracy to murder will be ready on Friday, despite a large portion of the docu- ment being accidentally deleted from a computer in the State solicitor’s of- fice in Ennis.

Essam Eid, a native of Egypt with an address in Nevada, US, is charged with conspiring along with Sha- ron Collins (44) of Ballybeg House, Kildysart Road, Ennis, to murder Ennis brothers Robert and Niall Howard in 2006.

Mr Eid is also facing four fur- ther charges including demanding €100,000 from Ennis businessman PJ Howard to cancel a contract on the lives of Mr Howard and his two Sons.

He is also charged with burglary at

Westgate Business Park, Ennis, and handling stolen computers at Bal- laghboy, Doora and the Two Mile Inn Hotel, Limerick in September pau eToys

At Ennis District Court last Fri- day week, State Solicitor for Clare, Martin Linnane said a large portion of the book of evidence in the case had been lost on a computer in his office.

In court last Friday, Mr Linnane sought to clarify media reports that the material was lost as a result of the technical problem with the compu- ter. He stated that it had been deleted from the computer in error.

Mr Linnane also told Judge Joseph Mangan that there are 152 witnesses in the book of evidence and more may be added. He said he would have the book by next Friday.

Defending solicitor for Mr Eid, John Casey, however asked Judge Joseph Mangan to mark the matter peremptory against the State if the Book is not available on Friday. The Judge declined to do so.

Mr Eid was remanded in custody until later this week, while Ms Col- lins was released on continuing bail until the same date.

A CONTINGENT of 15 people from St Patrick’s Comprehensive College in Shannon have just returned from Shannon’s twin town of Guingamp in France.

The group of two teachers and 13 students spent a week on an exchange with the College Jacques Prevert, in north Brittany.

Their French teacher Patricia Spaight and school chaplain Nuala Murray accompanied the students on the trip. While similar initiatives have taken place previously, this was the first time that the group twinned with a public school. The previous trips involved private schools.

As part of the exchange, a group of students from the French college

will return to Shannon in April. The Shannon students stayed with host families during the trip and the hos- pitality will be returned by the Shan- non families in April.

The group visited several venues. They took a number of day trips and took in a local museum, sports activi- ties and played a rugby match against their hosts.

Their arrival was followed by a reception hosted at the local Town Hall, where the mayor’s assistant made them feel very special. The Guingamp twinning committee also met with the Shannon group and made them feel at home.

“Everybody had a great time. There were tears shed when we were com- ing home,’ said Ms Spaight.

‘They are all keen to go back,” she

added.

“They were all very kind to us,” added Ms Spaight.

One of the highlights for the visiting students was the dancing lessons!

“They showed us how to do the Breton dance, while we showed them how to do the Siege of Ennis,” said Ms Spaight.

This event 1s part of the overall twinning initiative between Shannon and Guingamp. It includes visits be- tween both sides, at various stages of the year.

The introduction of the student ex- change adds an existing element for young people interested in learning more about France.

Over the years, the twinning initia- tive has been a huge success and has enabled Shannon to be marketed in

echelon

Since the official twinning charter was signed in 1990, the initiative has gone from strength to strength and the links have strengthened between the two areas.

Guingamp has a population of 10,000 and the main industry is ag- riculture.

Last year, the outgoing Mayor of Shannon, Councillor Tony McMahon cited the twinning trips as among his fondest memories, during his term as mayor.

A MAN charged in connection with an alleged arson attack on an Ennis home last month has been remanded in custody with consent to bail.

Stephen McGuire (29) of Pine Grove, Ennis, is accused of commit- ting arson, in that he did without law- ful excuse damage by fire a house, on October 18.

At Ennis District Court on Friday he was granted bail. However he was not in a position at the time to provide the €1,000 cash lodgment sought by the court, along with his own surety of €1,000 and an independent surety of €10,000.

Inspector Michael Gallagher told the court that the State was object- ing to bail given the seriousness of the charge.

Inspector Gallagher said however, if the court was considering bail the State would be seeking ‘substantial bail’ and ‘strict conditions’ which were outlined to the court.

These include staying away from the Pine Grove Estate in Ennis, stay- ing away from two named individu- als; living at an address in Clarecas- tle, signing on daily at Ennis Garda Station and observing a strict cur- one

Defending solicitor Tara Godfrey said that her client was not in a po- sition to produce the €1,000 cash surety sought by the court. She said she would require time to discuss the cash bail.

Judge Joseph Mangan remanded the accused in custody with consent to bail to appear in court again this Neto) .e

INCREASED stress levels and a change in lifestyle are resulting in increasing numbers attending for counselling and psychometric testing services in Shannon.

Roisin Gandhi opened her business Phoenix Career and Life Solutions in Shannon three years ago.

The business is three-pronged. It is a recruitment firm, along with of-

fering counselling and psychometric testing, the latter which is analysis and advice for those unsure about their career paths.

Since the business was established it has expanded. Ms Gandhi has since recruited a part-time sales as- sistant and office manager. However she doesn’t plan to expand it further as she enjoys the ‘personal’ effect af- forded to clients.

“The recruitment is the main part

of the business, but I would counsel clients on a weekly basis,” she said.

Psychometric testing has become particularly beneficial to those who are unsettled and considering chang- ing their careers.

They are given the option of an- swering a couple of hundred ques- tions and the answers provided will point Roisin in a particular direction, with regards dishing out advice.

“I do think there is a need for this

type of business in Shannon, for peo- ple of all ages, from those in their teens, to those in their 40s or 50s,’ she said.

“Shannon is an area with a lot of multinationals. I would have a strong client base in Limerick and in Ennis, closeby,” she said.

Although born in the UK, she has lived in Ireland for some time and she is no stranger to Clare as her family, the Slatterys, hailed from Ennis.