- 4 hours ago
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00Hello and welcome to Ear to the Ground. This week on the programme, I'm here in Killy Bays with fishermen
00:05who are reeling from proposals to cut the macro quota.
00:09I've already taken a 60-70% cut in the past 10 years and now you want to cut me
00:14another 70%? We'll be left with a little or nothing.
00:17Ella meets a brave Kilkenny farmer threatened by trespassers on his land.
00:21When I arrived and engaged in conversation with them, I then realised it might have been a mistake.
00:27And Dara is in Waterford learning how artificial intelligence is transforming farming.
00:33Should be 115 days ago. There it is now on the screen. 115.2 days.
01:00For as long as people have owned land, there's been the challenge of others coming onto it without permission.
01:07But in recent years, some farmers say that the scale and sometimes the troubling nature of these incursions has grown,
01:15becoming a genuine worry in rural communities.
01:19In Kilkenny, beef and sheep farmer Edward Butler from Danesford has been feeling the impact first hand.
01:27We've always had a problem with trespassing, but aggressive trespassing is a new thing.
01:33In the last two years, there has been an increase and also an increase in the aggressive nature of the
01:39trespassers.
01:40What are they doing on your land?
01:43We're coming across large groups that are letting dogs loose and they're hunting any form of wildlife that they can
01:50come across.
01:51And we're now coming to the stage where they're actually deliberately targeting sheep.
01:56In November 2023, an incident took things to an entirely new level for Edward.
02:05Nothing prepared me for what I saw.
02:08I found eight men in an 11-acre field with the sheep cornered in one end of the field, with
02:15eight dogs being blooded on the sheep.
02:17What does that mean, being blooded?
02:19In order to encourage the dogs to kill and be more effective at killing, they have to get the taste
02:24of blood.
02:25And on this occasion, they were using the pregnant yews as the blooded animal.
02:32I had horrendous losses.
02:34Sheep torn.
02:36Some of those sheep, when they lambed afterwards, the lambs weren't able to drink because the teats had been bitten
02:41off the oars.
02:44Several animals were left with serious injuries and one was killed.
02:49In the aftermath, Edward moved his sheep nearer the farmyard to keep a closer eye on them.
02:56Just over two months later, while I was feeding the cattle early in the morning,
03:00I spotted three men coming with dogs from the sheep field again.
03:06Edward headed straight down to the field.
03:11He'd only recently fitted a dash cam to his vehicle.
03:16I was more concerned about the animals on the way up than actually meeting the individuals.
03:22Did you have any concerns about your own safety?
03:26When I arrived and I engaged in a conversation with them, I then realised it might have been a mistake.
03:40What did you say to them when you got out of the car?
03:43I told them that you're trespassing.
03:45What did they say back?
03:47They said that they were going to hunt here every week and there was nothing I could do about it.
03:54They got extremely aggressive and I said that I was going to call the guards.
04:00And then you can see him shouting and shouting at you and pointing his finger at you as well.
04:04What was he saying?
04:05At that stage, he said that he was going to kill me and bury me in the field.
04:11And what was going through your head at that stage?
04:15I realised that I was in a situation that I wasn't going to get out of too easy.
04:20But I kept talking and as you can see, he tried to get over the gate and swung at me.
04:28Backed up by the other two.
04:31And eventually one of them came over the gate after me.
04:35I reversed to the jeep and I informed them that there was a dashcam recording everything.
04:40And it was only then they retreated.
04:46In situations like this, Gardaà advised people to report what's happened and to avoid approaching or engaging directly.
04:55That's very good advice.
04:57But unfortunately, if you don't approach them, you can't identify them.
05:01And if you can't identify them, you can't stop it.
05:05Following a trial last July, one man was found guilty of trespass and threatening behaviour.
05:12He was handed a four-year sentence with the final 18 months suspended.
05:20Since then, Edward has stepped up security measures around the farm at a cost of close to €2,000.
05:26It's the phone to move the camera.
05:28In September, Superintendent Michael Corbett became Ireland's first rural crime lead.
05:34It's very clear there now. Very good.
05:36While clear figures on rural crime remain hard to pin down, largely due to the way incidences are recorded,
05:43his appointment is viewed as a recognition that trespass has become a real issue for farming communities.
05:51There seems to have been an increase in it since COVID.
05:53We seem to see more of these persons coming out.
05:56They're hunting, like, not alone are they hunting rabbits, they're hunting hares.
05:59In some instances, we have instances of where people are digging out foxes and badgers.
06:05You know, some of it is just really barbaric.
06:09Do you think that the current law around trespass is enough to stop these crimes from happening?
06:15Yeah, I suppose the main two sections of legislation that cover trespass currently are Section 11 and Section 13 of
06:22the Public Order Act 1994.
06:24And they primarily are around buildings and the cartilage of buildings.
06:28So they don't really extend out to farmland.
06:31So I suppose there's definitely room there to improve the legislation around the area of trespassing on farmland.
06:38Do you have a dedicated team and a dedicated budget for this rural crime unit?
06:43No, Ella.
06:44Look, this is a starting point.
06:46And I suppose what I'd be hoping is that this role will grow in the future and possibly down the
06:52road get a foothold as regards maybe possibly a unit.
06:55And that as regards allocating resources, it's important that people report the crime because if they don't report it, we
07:02can't investigate it.
07:03And then you can't allocate resources to preventing it or to detecting it.
07:08In September, a private member's bill was brought before the Dáil to amend the 1994 Public Order Act so that
07:17all farmland would be included within its scope.
07:21Since the court case, Edward has faced five further incidences of trespass, the latest leading to the loss of two
07:29sheep.
07:30It's left him feeling that any new legislation will need to go further if it's to offer real protection for
07:37farmers.
07:38So what changes in the legislation around trespass do you think would help you?
07:44Reverse the onus on the trespasser.
07:47Get him or her to prove that they had permission.
07:49Allow the guards to change the legislation to catch the individuals on farmland and ask them had they permission or
07:58whose land they were on.
08:00And failure to do so, find them on the spot.
08:03Remove the farmers from the equation.
08:06We shouldn't be the last line of defence for the wildlife and the cruelty that's happening across the country.
08:13The legislation needs to be changed in order to prevent this continuing.
08:22That's it for part one.
08:24Coming up after the break, macro stocks and fishermen in crisis.
08:28We estimate that we will lose 2,600 jobs next year if this goes ahead.
08:32And transforming farming with artificial intelligence.
08:43The Irish fishing fleet catches around 80 million euros worth of mackerel every year, making it the most valuable fish
08:51landed here.
08:53But once again, scientists are warning that stock levels are dangerously low, and that the numbers being caught need to
09:00be drastically reduced.
09:03Cilly Beggs is the largest fishing port in the country.
09:06Martin Éine O'Conneillagh is based here, and like all Irish skippers, is required by law to keep a record
09:13of his catch.
09:14I fill out my logbook before midnight every night.
09:18I give four hours notice before I return to harbour to the authorities, telling them how much fish I have
09:24on board, what time I'm offloading, so that they can be ready waiting for me at the pier.
09:29And then if they do an inspection at the port, I assume whatever you have on board there.
09:34Yes, the fish on board must reflect what you have hailed coming ashore.
09:40Otherwise, you're in trouble.
09:43After Brexit, Ireland permanently lost 26% of its macro quota, and 39 large-scale fisheries vessels were decommissioned, leaving
09:53just 230 such boats in the Irish fleet.
09:57I'll spin it back now again, Victor, all right?
10:00Marching's trawler, RÃot Arra, is one of those still fishing.
10:05Do you come from a fishing family?
10:06Oh, yeah. My father was a fisherman. He comes from generations of fishermen.
10:12Island people, that's all we knew. It's our DNA. It's our identity.
10:18As a result of Brexit and other quota cuts, over the last decade, skippers like Marching have seen their catch
10:25sizes vastly reduced.
10:28How much macro would you have been fishing versus today?
10:31Ten years ago, a vessel of this size, we would have probably had a quota of anywhere between 600 to
10:37700 tons of mackerel, and it would have taken us, you know, a month or two to catch that amount
10:43of fish.
10:44Over the past ten years, it's been cut, been cut. In 2025, I was down to roughly 250 tons of
10:51mackerel.
10:52It's a huge cut over a short period of time.
10:55But those cuts look set to continue.
10:58The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, or ICES, is an intergovernmental body which provides impartial, science-based
11:07advice to the EU on fish stocks.
11:10It has recommended a 70% reduction in the macro quota for 2026.
11:16Part of the research that has led to that decision is carried out by the Irish Marine Institute.
11:22What's happening to mackerel numbers in our waters?
11:26The stock size has been declining for pretty much the last decade.
11:30This year's assessment shows a concerning characteristic now because it's now declined below a point where we consider that the
11:38stock has impaired reproductive capacity.
11:42This is exacerbated by the fact that the advice that ICES has issued over this time has been exceeded by,
11:47on average, about 40%.
11:48And that's because there hasn't been an agreement between the parties that fish mackerel on how to share the catches.
11:54If the advice had been adhered to, there would be another potentially 2 million tonnes of fish in the water
12:00now.
12:01That's the level of overcatch over the last 10 years.
12:04Irish boats must adhere to EU fishing quotas.
12:08But boats from so-called third countries also fish these shared waters.
12:14A. O'Donnell is CEO of the Irish Fish Producers Organisation.
12:19Do you accept the science that macro stocks are under pressure?
12:22We don't agree with all of the science all of the time, but the scientists measure the quality and the
12:27quantity and the sustainability of the stocks.
12:30So we accept the science, but in accepting the science, we're paying the price for those who don't.
12:35It's basically driven by overfishing by a number of non-EU states.
12:40Norway, Iceland, Faroes, they've overfished the stock by up to 40% above the science.
12:44In five years alone, the Norwegians have caught 1 million tonnes of mackerel above the scientific recommendations.
12:51So we're being penalised for the overfishing of others.
12:55Norwegian fishing organisations say they are fishing what is rightfully theirs.
13:00Prior to 2021, there was a sharing arrangement for mackerel involving Norway, the Faroe Islands and the EU.
13:09But no new arrangement has been agreed since.
13:13Are you making plans for a 70% reduction?
13:15I'm looking towards trying to diversify possibly to other species.
13:21It might ease some pressure for me, but I'm putting more pressure on another vessel because I want to take
13:29part in his fishery.
13:31The reality is that this will lead to major job losses, both onshore and offshore.
13:37We estimate that we will lose 2,600 jobs next year if this goes ahead.
13:41The boats, for their part, will fish for one to two weeks per year, then they have to tie up.
13:46The 70% cut to mackerel isn't the only one being called for.
13:52ICES is also recommending a 41% cut to blue whiting and a 22% cut to boarfish, a species
13:59cut for fish meal.
14:01These proposals will impact Ireland more than any other EU member state and could be approved at the EU's Fishery
14:09Council this month.
14:11This will probably go down to the 11th hour.
14:13Like Brexit, I'll probably get news on Christmas Eve telling me what my quota will be for the following year.
14:21I'm seriously worried because the main thing for me is can I make my repayments?
14:27Is there enough there for my crew?
14:29Is there enough there for my family?
14:31There are so many things at play.
14:33It's very serious times ahead.
14:36So what can be done about this?
14:37It's simple.
14:39We've got to push at the highest levels politically for Europe to impose sanctions against these people who are failing
14:47to comply with the science.
14:49We have the richest waters in Europe, but we need to protect it.
14:52We need to defend it.
14:53We have the markets.
14:54We have the factories.
14:56We have the fleets.
14:57But this needs to be protected and defended.
15:00We've been looking at a decline in macro numbers for the past 10 years.
15:04What happens if the 70% cut in the quota doesn't work?
15:09Then the advice will fall further.
15:12Ultimately, that's what will happen.
15:13And if the stock remains below its limit point, the advice will fall further and potentially to zero.
15:19However, mackerel has been at this level before and has recovered.
15:23So there's no reason to think that it won't.
15:27Fishermen like Marching have endured a difficult time since Brexit.
15:32Unless an agreement between the EU and third countries on fishing quotas in the northeast Atlantic can be reached, that's
15:40not likely to change.
15:43I have no intention of getting out of the industry.
15:45I love the industry.
15:46I'm passionate about it.
15:48The greatest satisfaction I get out of fishing is bringing fish home to my family and see my kids big
15:55smile on their face.
15:56You know, that's very important to me.
15:58As an islander, as a coastal man, we need to preserve that.
16:05You know?
16:10First it was regulations, then it was paperwork.
16:14Now farmers find themselves drowning in data.
16:18But artificial intelligence is starting to make sense of all the endless info and helping farmers make the right decision
16:26every time.
16:28On this 300-acre farm in County Waterford, Patsy O'Hearn keeps one of the most productive dairy herds in
16:35the country.
16:36All 240 cows wear collars fitted with sensors which tell Patsy and his farm manager, Ross Crow, about the health
16:44and well-being of the herd.
16:46The majority should be pregnant.
16:48But for six animals, the collars are indicating otherwise.
16:52The collars have flagged up a number of cows that suspected loss of pregnancy, so we just want to make
16:57sure that they're still in calf so we can make a decision.
17:00It's just a double check, really.
17:01It's no point in carrying an empty cow through the winter and finding out in February that she hasn't got
17:05a calf, so.
17:07Patsy operates a spring calving system.
17:09His cows need to give birth between the beginning of February and the end of March so they can graze
17:15the best grass for as long as possible.
17:18If they're not pregnant now, they're going to be cold, right?
17:20There will be cold.
17:22You just want to keep animals that are earning their keep by producing milk?
17:25Absolutely.
17:26We want to keep animals that have a future, i.e. they're young enough, they're pregnant, and they'll produce.
17:32But an empty animal, their career is over and they have to be cold.
17:37Dr. Dan Ryan is a reproductive physiologist who has been scanning cows for over 40 years.
17:44This herd was scanned by him at different times over the last six months.
17:47Today, he's returning to give Patsy clarity on whether these six animals are in fact pregnant, and more importantly, when
17:55they will calve.
17:56So today we need to find out what's...
17:59Today is D-Day.
18:00Okay.
18:00Does she stay or does she go?
18:02Okay, here we go.
18:04Today, Dan is scanning using artificial intelligence to enhance the ultrasound technology.
18:11This innovation, developed by Dan himself, aims to give more accurate information to the farmer.
18:18I have a screen in front of me on your mobile phone.
18:22I can see this, yeah.
18:22It's like the same thing.
18:23Yeah.
18:24Now, that's the head of the fetus.
18:25Now, the machine is actually aging that pregnancy.
18:29Should be 115 days ago.
18:32There it is now on the screen.
18:33Yeah, 115.
18:34115.2 days, Dara.
18:36Yeah.
18:36Artificial intelligence is actually taking the data as the cow is being scanned, interpreting that data in real time.
18:45You know, you have a lot of people that will come in and scan that cow and say she's five
18:48months pregnant, three months pregnant.
18:50Whereas this removes that subjectivity.
18:54Confirmation of pregnancy can be done with standard scanning.
18:57But this AI-driven tech claims to predict accurate calving dates, information that's vital in modern dairying.
19:05Based on the scan, this cow is due to give birth just on the edge of Patsy's calving window.
19:12First of April means it's hugely different to the 15th of April, let's say.
19:17You know what I mean?
19:18And look, for the animal herself, if she calves the 1st of April, she may stay in the herd.
19:23If she's later, she won't be staying yet.
19:26Would you have been able to age that pregnancy as well as the artificial intelligence here on the phone?
19:31You would be able to age it maybe to again 15 days of its true age.
19:37But from the perspective of the farmer, wanting to know a calving date, that's not sufficiently accurate.
19:43And that's the problem in the industry.
19:45This will give you precision.
19:49Dan's technology, called ScanInsights, uses artificial intelligence to review over two and a half million historic ultrasounds and data from
19:58Irish cows.
20:00As he scans the next cow, the AI-driven algorithm cross-references those files to identify patterns and should make
20:07more accurate predictions.
20:10The previous scan, I have up in front of my screen, that she was scanned 42 days pregnant.
20:16Now, we just go in and immediately the machine is turning around.
20:21We want to try and get the data, some of the data to come up now.
20:25There's the snout of the calf coming up.
20:30As Dan moves the probe around inside the cow, the AI can cross-reference more images and data and reassess
20:38its initial calculation.
20:41There's 173 days on the base of the foot and the snout of the calf.
20:45You've loads of experience. Surely you can tell a pregnancy just as good as this.
20:49But if you're only dealing with the foot of the calf appearing on the scan, how can one age that
20:56accurately based on the size of that foot or the level of bone tissue that's in that foot?
21:02Artificial intelligence takes the 2.5 million scans that we have in the library that has built this artificial intelligence.
21:14Artificial intelligence is already helping Irish farmers to process vast amounts of data and improve decision-making on everything from
21:22how to treat a sick animal to the correct spraying of herbicides.
21:28One such advancement is digital twinning, where AI-driven virtual farms replicate real farms.
21:36Dr. Dunna Berry, Senior Principal Research Officer with Chagask, believes this advancement is set to transform the sector.
21:44It allows you to, for want of a better word, play around with what you're doing.
21:48So increase the grass allowance, reduce the concentrate feeding, a menu of different options.
21:53And you can look at the impact that will have on the individual cow, at the system, at the environmental
21:58level.
21:58And it enables you then to determine what is your best course of action.
22:03Farmers spend a huge amount of their time doing repetitive tasks, milking cows, herding cows, measuring grass.
22:10Artificial intelligence can remove a lot of that away from the farmer's day-to-day life.
22:14So they can actually focus a lot more strategically on where they're going to go in the next 10 years.
22:20In the here and now, artificial intelligence is already proving its worth.
22:25Use his goods straight away.
22:27Okay, pregnancy.
22:28So we've got a pregnancy, and they're the legs of the fetus.
22:31Okay.
22:31Every farming generation has experienced technological change.
22:35Now, that pace of change is unprecedented.
22:39115.2 days.
22:41That's just with the snout of the calf.
22:45That's great to see things coming on, because nobody wants their family going back to do the kind of work
22:50that some of us did when we were younger.
22:53And for the industry to attract people into it, we need technology, and we need AI to replace some of
23:01the physical work and make life better.
23:04I don't know what the future holds, but it'll be very different.
23:11That's it for this program.
23:13Next week on Ear to the Ground, I'll be finding out what the recent outbreak of Blue Tongue in Northern
23:18Ireland means for Irish farming.
23:21Darragh will be taking a dip off the coast of Waterford.
23:25There's a reason why people don't feel this on a Sunday morning.
23:29Before relaxing in a brand new off-farm venture.
23:32Ella will be in Kilkenny, playing elf to a farmer turned toy maker.
23:37How big an object can you scan?
23:39I could scan you if I wanted to scan you as well, yeah.
23:42Don't forget that this program will be repeated on Sunday at lunchtime after the farming weather.
23:47You can contact us on Facebook and follow us on X, and you can hear more farming stories on Countrywide
23:54this Saturday morning on RTE Radio 1.
Comments