Author: National Ploughing Association

The Site in Ratheniska, Stadbally Co. Laois will be a hive of activity this weekend as exhibitors put the finishing touches to their stands for the 82^nd National Ploughing Championships. The grounds of the event have witnessed major change and preparations over the past number of months and are now ready for hosting 180,000 expected visitors, next week.

With over 1,300 exhibitors manning stands across a broad spectrum of Agriculture, Forestry, Motors, Lifestyle, Business Services, Education, Tourism, Food, Health, Crafts and much more, there is something for all the family to enjoy.

Some of this year’s exhibits that are sure to prove very popular include:

• The Husqvarna Hurdle – Where the public will be invited to test their skills and agility on a large obstacle course in a 35sq meter arena. (Block 2, Row Aa-a, Stand 1)

• The Bandstand – Operating a free Wi-Fi hotspot, the Bandstand will witness the first ever “Tweetup” to be staged at the event taking place on Wednesday at 2pm. Organised by Elaine Hall @newfarmerette, all avid tweeters are welcome to attend the #Ploughing event. For music lovers, the Bandstand will showcase the best in local and Irish talent. Over the 3 days, the line-up will include Portlaoise Gospel Choir, Hill Billy Porter, Laois Ceoltas, James & Robert Harvey, PJ Murrihy, 65 Kitchen Choir and many more. (Block 2, Row B1, Stand 538)

• Food lovers will be spoiled for choice with several stands presenting Cookery demonstrations throughout the 3 days. Neven Maguire will be entertaining crowds with his culinary skills at 11pm, 1pm and 3pm each day in the Irish Farmers Journal tent. Over in the National Dairy Council (NDC) tent, Phelim Byrne will be sharing easy and exciting recipes that incorporate the use of Irish produce such as milk, cheese and yogurt; while the Irish Country Womans Association will host Edward Hayden and Cathal Moran over the 3 days. In addition, Irish Olympian and winner of RTE Celebrity Masterchef, David Gillick will be cooking up at the Electric Ireland stand each day at 11.30am, 2.30pm and 4.30pm.

• For aspiring fashionistas, the Championships is a must attend event. Once again, this year will see the dedicated Fashion Marquee house the highly popular daily fashion shows at 11.30am, 1.30pm and 3.30pm. With a large number of boutiques and fashion houses taking to the catwalk, the ladies from the Holman Lee Model Agency will style the latest trends and vogues. Also taking place will be the ever popular “Most Appropriately Dressed Lady” and “Most Appropriately Dressed Gent” competitions which are kindly sponsored by Wineport Lodge and Louis Copeland & Sons. Those attending the Fashion Marquee are also encouraged to complete an entry form for the “Grand Audience Prize” which is a voucher to the value of €500 kindly sponsored by Thomas Cook Holidays.

• As machinery continues to be a main attraction at the event, all the top brands will be showcasing their latest models with representatives on hand to answer all your queries. Some to the top plant & machinery brands this year include New Holland, Massey Ferguson, Valtra, Landini, McCormick, Case IH, Deutz-Fahr, Shire, Class, Manitou, Zetor, Tumosan and Kubota. For those with a specific interest in tractors, the “Live Tractor Build” is returning to the Championships this year and is sure to prove extremely popular. Fans can witness this feat daily at Block 1, Row W, Stand 375.

• For those feeling energetic and healthy, the “Plough-On & Run” which is a10k fun run in aid of VITA will be taking place on September 22nd at 11am in Ratheniska, Stradbally, Co. Laois. With a ‘Sport & Fitness’ theme running through many of the stands at this year’s event, several stands will be attended by celebrity sports personnel. For example, Rugby fans will have the opportunity to rub shoulders with Paul O’Connell at the Pinergy stand or with John “The Bull” Hayes at the Progressive Genetics stand while Alan Quinlan will be at the NDC tent. For Hurling fans, Corbett Sport and Canning Hurleys are must visit stands where Lar and Joe will surely be on hand to meet their fellow lovers of the sport. While Tipperary hurler Pádraic Maher & Dublin hurling manager Anthony Daly will be at the NDC tent. For all other GAA fans the Cumann Luthchleas Gael tent located at Block 4, Row S, Stand 308 is a must. Boxing fans have the opportunity to meet Irish Olympian Darren O’Neill at the National Dairy Council (NDC) dome while also learning the benefits of milk for rehydration. Also, here sport enthusiasts can participate in virtual penalty shootouts.

• This year for the first time the National Ploughing Championships will have a dedicated Children’s Playground which has been constructed by Laois Ploughing in conjunction with Go Play/Kompan. Children and Parents alike can find this new attraction located at Block 3, Row V, Stand 364.

• Back by popular demand this year also will be the Portwest Welly Throwing competition. Located next to the Hunt Chase, this event will raise money for two great local organisations, Park Ratheniska and Laois Youth Café.

• With over 300 competitors taking to the ploughing fields throughout the 3 days, rivalry is sure to be at an all-time high. Many of the competitors will be wishing to pit their skills against John Whelan and Eamonn Tracey who secured Gold and Bronze respectively for their country at the World Ploughing Championships in Canada recently. However, the competitive spirit of the Championships does not stop with ploughing. Throughout the 3 days there will be competitions in Sheep Dog Trials, Meggers, Hunt Chase, Pony Games, Sheep Shearing and much more. The All Ireland Sheep Shearing Competitions taking place on Wednesday will feature the current World Record holder Ivan Scott while the Irish Sheep Shearing team for the next World event will be announced on Thursday.

• Another first for the Championships this year will be the Irish Language quarter. ‘Pobal Na Gaeilge’ is an initiative bringing together several Irish language groups to provide visitors with an array of events including musical sessions, competitions, CD launches and information on products, services, and supports available through Irish.

An action packed 3 days is promised at the National Ploughing Championships from 24^th to 26^th of September. Tickets are available on the gate priced at €20 for adults, €15 for students, €15 for senior citizens with children under 12 going free. 

Macra na Feirme will be all action and plenty of talk next week at the

National Ploughing Championships. The young farmers and rural youth organisation will getting on their bikes and asking visitors to help Make a Million Moves for Macra on their road to fitness as part of the ‘Feirme Bodies’ programme. Come in and get on our exercise bike and help clock up some moves.

Macra are launching their Gathering, ‘Racing for Macra’, a night at the dogs taking place on the 30th November 2013. They invited members to the Macra stand at 11am on Tuesday, the 24th September to take a group photo promoting the event to past and present members and friends of the organisation.

Again this year, Macra are going bigger and better, literally, with their ‘Are You Licensed to Pull?’ campaign to highlight changes to driving license categories concerning the pulling of trailers. Come along and take a photo with Macra’s life size jeep and trailer and share your photo on Facebook and Twitter for the chance to win a ‘I’m Licensed to Pull!’ tshirt.

Changes have meant that many drivers, who are not licensed to pull a trailer behind their vehicle, are not aware they are breaking the law. Macra na Feirme National President, Kieran O’Dowd, and FBD Young Farmer of the Year, John Buckley, will be at the National Ploughing Championships in Ratheniska highlighting issues for young farmers. With so many competitions, festivals and events, Macra always has a lot to show at the Ploughing stand, whether it’s sports you’re interested in or you fancy yourself as the next FBD Young Farmer of the Year! We’re happy to have a chat with you about how you can get involved and maybe you’ll be attending the Macra stand next year as one of the many winners who visit us over the three days.

Macra have launched a range of new discounts and offers for members including 15% off FBD car insurance; €5.50 tickets in Omniplex cinemas on the 2nd Tuesday of every month; great discounts on phones and broadband with O2 and the student fare on Bus Eireann services. There has never been a better time to join Macra – with membership from €20, it’s a cheap and cheerful social life with a difference!

On Thursday, we’ll announce the regional winners of the Macra/ Forage Systems Silage competition at our stand. Over the three days, we’ll also be doing Farmskills demonstrations with the winners of our FBD Farmskills competition – they’ll show you how fencing and tractor skills are essential in modern farming.

Macra will host our annual “Macra Ploughing Class” in association with the National Ploughing Association on Thursday at 10.30am. County rounds have been taking place throughout the country for the last few months and those winners will be going through to the final taking place at the prestigious NPA Championships.

Macra can be found on row T, stand 325, block 3.

Invitation to visit Stand 20 Row LS Block 3

at the forthcoming Ploughing Match

The on-line semen company, Semenstore Ltd, has announced that it is launching a new site, www.semenstore.ie, specifically for the Republic of Ireland. Semenstore staff will be promoting the site from their promotional stand at the National Ploughing Championships to be held between 24-26^th September at Ratheniska, Co Laois.

 The introduction of www.semenstore.ie follows the tried and trusted success of the Semenstore website in the UK which has proven to be extremely popular since it was it was set up in 2009. Semenstore sales have been to the commercial and pedigree markets as well as to some nineteen countries world-wide including the Republic of Ireland.

 Commenting Steve Jones, Semenstore’s Livestock & Genetics Specialist, said: “This is an exciting development and we are delighted to be launching the online www.semenstore.ie in the Republic of Ireland. Semenstore has been regularly selling into Ireland and there is a clear demand from pedigree and commercial farmers for both UK & EU genetics. The launch of this site will meet that demand and make it easier, cheaper, and quicker for farmers to source and purchase the semen of their choice”.

 Building on a proven model which offers cost-effective and secure purchase of semen online, www.semenstore.ie will initially offer a portfolio of 30 bulls from all the major beef breeds including Limousin, British Blue, Aberdeen Angus, Charolais, Simmental, and Hereford. This portfolio will continue to grow over time as Semenstore looks to procure and offer bulls ideally suited for the Irish market.

 The Thurles, County Tipperary-based Dovea Genetics Ltd, will act as the central storage and distribution “hub” for Semenstore.ie providing country-wide fast and efficient delivery to DIY customers or via AI Technicians. “Dovea Genetics is a progressive, and well established company in the semen and genetics business,” said Steve Jones, “we are delighted to be working with them and will benefit from the experience and professionalism that they have.”

 The Semenstore model provides a fully-automated and comprehensive ‘one-stop-semen-shop’ that makes it easy if you are looking to market and sell, or to locate and buy, semen.

 For those selling semen, www.semenstore.ie promotes and markets bulls in a professional, and efficient manner. Making it easy for vendors, Semenstore collects all monies due, credit accounts on a monthly basis and looks after all aspects of storage, delivery and stock maintenance on the seller’s behalf.

Easy-to-use, prospective purchasers can search, select and buy semen in a few easy clicks. Safe and secure, delivery and invoicing are all automated, and the order can either be despatched to an on-farm flask or through the AI technician network.

 Whilst it is an on-line business, Semenstore has a professional staff behind it with Steve Jones offering a wealth of livestock knowledge and being a point of contact for both Semenstore buyers and sellers.

 The Semenstore website address for Republic of Ireland is www.semenstore.ie and the new site will go live through September 2013.

16 indigenous companies from the South East will participate in ‘Experience Carlow’

From internet hosting technology to a treatment for tired eyes, from sportswear to world leading water technologies, some of Ireland’s latest innovations developed by Carlow-based companies, will be on display at the National Ploughing Championships 2013.

Located this year at Ratheniska, County Laois, from 24^th – 26^th September, the championships will showcase the ‘Experience Carlow’ stand.

Supported by Carlow County Enterprise Board in total 16 county Carlow companies will exhibit a wide range of goods and services across sectors including, health, lifestyle, home and garden, tourism and fashion. The exhibitors are confident of receiving €250,000 worth of orders during this year’s championships.

Exhibitors will include Cheetah Electronics, which has been manufacturing industrial applications in Ballon, Co. Carlow since 1974 and is a leading provider of water technology. R-wear is a quality brand developed for the sport, casual and optical wear market that is official sponsor and sportswear supplier to the Irish Curling Team.

Other companies participating in the ‘Experience Carlow’ tent is Blacknight Internet Solutions, the Irish market leader in its field which manages hosting services throughout Ireland and the United Kingdom, while the ‘Eye Spoon’ is a solution for tired, red, itchy and scratchy eyes, developed by Dr. Michéal Gallagher of The Original Eye Spoon Company.

“The National Ploughing Championships is an important platform for small and medium sized enterprises throughout the region,” said Kieran Comerford, CEO, Carlow County Enterprise Board.

He continued: “The ‘Experience Carlow’ stand will allow visitors to sample a diverse range of successful products, goods and services, which in turn encourages the local economy and promotes Irish owned businesses. The 16 exhibitors taking part in the scheme, which includes both long established and new businesses is a testament to the enterprise initiative in Carlow.”

Organisers are expecting nearly 200,000 visitors from Tuesday, 24^th – Thursday, 26^th September. The ‘Experience Carlow’ stand will be a focal point of the many exhibits and tents on show at the 100 acre trade arena.