Author: National Ploughing Association

Announcement of new ‘Premier Club’ planned for National Ploughing Championships 2017 to go that extra mile to support Irish farmers

LIC Ireland has today announced that they have had one of their most successful years in the Irish market to date, with growth over the past 12 months of 15%. Added to this, impressive new herd reproduction data released by the company illustrate a marked improvement in calving patterns in New Zealand, with more farmers achieving the target of having 60% of the herd calved within three weeks.

Commenting on the results, Mark Ryder, LIC’s European General Manager said, “We are delighted with our developments and improvements in the Irish market. We believe that we offer Irish farmers the highest quality product that New Zealand has to offer, this is quality genetics from Holstein-Friesian, Jersey and KiwiCross™ bulls proven through LIC ’s unique Sire Proving Scheme in New Zealand.

LIC’s progeny test programme, known as the Sire Proving Scheme (or SPS) began in 1961. Today it is one of the largest progeny test schemes in the world. To be able to offer our great genetics to Irish farmers is the aim, and our recent calving pattern data from New Zealand proves that we are doing just that. Good genetics are fundamental to herd improvement, allowing farmers to be more efficient, which in turn benefits their bottom line, and the wider Irish dairy industry as a whole.”

With a high proportion of LIC bred cows represented in the top 2000 cow EBI list, from a disproportionately low number of matings, LIC’s vision in Ireland is to improve the prosperity, productivity and efficiency of farmers through the continual supply of our elite bulls. To ensure this, LIC is delighted to announce that a programme will soon be available to Irish farmers which will provide better access than ever.

The LIC ‘Premier Club’ will be launched exclusively at this year’s Ploughing Championships and will ensure that Irish farmers continue to benefit from LIC’s elite product offering, giving them access to the very best LIC bulls available, and giving them more of a selection than ever before. Membership of the Premier Club will not only provide access to the best genetics in the world, but farmers will also have access to training resources and helpful tools, support and information from LIC dairy industry experts, and exclusive entry to LIC Premier Club competitions and prize draws.

Commenting on the development, Mark Ryder said, “We have worked closely with the Irish Industry and with LIC at home in New Zealand to ensure that at the end of the day, what we are offering is in the best interest of Irish farmers and LIC. We all believe that this is more than just about the straws. It’s about LIC Ireland’s desire to go the extra mile to support the business of Irish farmers for the long-term, while protecting the investment we make in New Zealand and Ireland, to ensure we can continue to deliver our world-class products.”

LIC Ireland will be announcing further details and information around the launch of the Premier Club in Ireland, and how to become a member, ahead of this year’s National Ploughing Championships.

NEW 5008 SUV TO TAKE PRIDE OF PLACE ON PEUGEOT STAND AT THE NATIONAL PLOUGHING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Peugeot is gearing up for a busy show at the 2017 National Ploughing Championships, returning to Screggan, Tullamore from 19 to 21 September. The new Peugeot 5008 seven seater SUV, will take pride of place on the Peugeot stand for its first public unveiling in Ireland, alongside the award-winning Peugeot range, to include the new 3008 SUV, European Car of the Year 2017, the Peugeot 2008 SUV, Irish Small SUV of the Year 2017 and the new Peugeot Expert van, Irish Van of the Year 2017. A GAA Football Simulator and guest appearances by GAA stars from around the country are set to draw the crowds, whilst local singer, Dickie Donnelly and Galway’s Sabrina Fallon, singer songwriter and Glor Tire 2017 contestant, will entertain visitors in the afternoons.

Emma Toner, Marketing Manager at Gowan Distributors Limited, Peugeot Importers in Ireland said, “We’re really looking forward to returning to the National Ploughing Championships this September, for the eighth consecutive year in a row, with a seventeen-vehicle display planned. Our range has never been as diverse or strong and demand for the exceptional Peugeot 2008 and 3008 SUVs continues to outperform the market. The arrival of the much-anticipated new Peugeot 5008 will be our third SUV brought to market, in less than 2 years.”

“On the van side of the business, the new Expert Combi and Crew Cab complete our Partner, Expert and Boxer light commercial van range, which continues to perform very strongly in 2017, thanks to our low-cost 3.9% HP finance offer and scrappage of up to €4,000.”

Local Peugeot brand ambassadors will meet and greet visitors throughout the three-day show, challenging fans to beat them at the Peugeot GAA Football Simulator: Aislinn Desmond, Kerry Ladies footballer, will appear on Tuesday, 19 September; Conor McManus, Monaghan footballer, will take to the stand on Wednesday, 20 September; Diarmuid O’Connor, Mayo footballer and All-Star Young Footballer of the Year 2015 and 2016 and Paul Murphy, All-Star and Kerry football player will both be present on Thursday, 21 September.

The Peugeot stand will be located at the show on Block 2-Row 6-Stand Number 159.

The team from Whitfield Hospital and UPMCWhitfield Cancer Centre are getting set for a return visit to the National Ploughing Championships in Tullamore. Following the success of last year’s visit, they have doubled the size of their stand to offer even more to the estimated 280,000 visitors to this, the premier agricultural event in the country.

The National Ploughing Championships take place each year in September. The 2017 Championships will be held at Screggan, Tullamore, Co Offaly from September 19th – 21st 2017.

Located at the Health & Wellness area, Block no.: 2, Row no: 29, Stand no: 644, Unit no. 21/22, the Whitfield Hospital / UPMCWhitfieldCancer Centre stand will show how and why they have been offering top class healthcare to the south east for over a decade.

It has been an exciting 12 months at Whitfield Hospital, which built a 5th theatre to keep up with increased patient demand.  It also launched its 2nd endoscopy suite and became the first hospital in Ireland and the UK to receive the ISO 50001(Energy Management System – helping conserve resources and tackling climate change)

Every year Whitfield Hospital supports events through-out the south east.These serve as a good opportunityfor the Whitfield staff to interact with the public off site and promoteits services. WhitfieldHospital has always received demand for services from Waterford, but the last 12 months has shown a steady increasefrom the whole south east.

The UPMC Whitfield Cancer Centre is an advanced radiation therapy centre serving patients in the south east. Managed by Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based healthcare leader UPMC, UPMC Whitfield has been accredited three times by the Joint Commission International—an independent organization that sets the “gold standard” for quality–since 2008.

UPMC Whitfield, which celebrated its 10th anniversary last year, has treated more than 17,000 patients with the most advanced radiation therapy. It is an approach that leverages one global team of experts to support one individual patient. As part of the UPMC Hillman CancerCenter, UPMC Whitfield leverages innovation and expertise from around the globe to deliver solutions and care to patients, closer to their homes.

This is a real opportunity for the public to meet and question the team from Whitfield Hospital and UPMC Whitfield Cancer Centre.

If you would like to learn more about their services and facilities, you can visit www.upmcwhitfieldcancercentre.ie or www.whitfieldclinic.ie.