Tirlán CellCheck Overall Champion Paul Barry has just received his eighth award at the CellCheck Milking for Quality Awards.

His incredible track record rewards Paul for his attention to detail day in day out in managing SCC levels on farm. Although this year’s award is his eighth in a row, it’s the first time the Laois man has won the overall Tirlán award.

Maintaining such a low cell count is all the more impressive given that he farms on very heavy ground 850ft above sea level in Wolfhill, Co Laois, and his 70-strong pedigree spring calving herd has to be housed when conditions are very wet.

“I’m at least the third generation to farm here and to supply to Tirlán. Cows like routine and I stick to one, especially when it comes to milking and managing SCC. I milk record and I keep the milking machine right. I service it once a year and regularly change liners. And I always wear gloves when milking. It’s amazing how much bacteria could transfer from your hands if not wearing gloves.

“I’ve been milk recording since 2007 and it allows me to immediately identify problem cows and deal with them. Without milk recording, you’re working blind. Even one cow could do a lot of harm.

“Last year was our first year to try selective dry cow here. We aim to select the lowest SCC cows with low risk factors and just treat these with sealers, skipping use of antibiotics. We used selective dry cow on 10 animals last year and had no issues with this group. The sealers are a great job. We plan to increase that a little bit more into the future year on year.”

Pauls’ Top Tips for maintaining a low cell count are:

• Milk record;
• Keep a young herd;
• Don’t spare lime or teat dip;
• Keep your milking machine right;
• Make sure you keep the cows and yourself as clean as possible.

“We have very long winters where I am and very wet, heavy ground. I aim to get the cows out to graze grass in spring as quickly as I can. This year was a particularly good year for us as even during the warmest spells our ground wouldn’t burn up.”

Paul says his Tirlán Milk Supply Manager, John Fitzpatrick, is at the end of the phone anytime he is needed for advice. “It’s great to have the support there if and when you need it. I’ve found open days on other farms insightful and helpful but the bottom line when milking is to keep an eye on the simple things and ensure they’re done.”

Paul has been farming full-time since 2014 and while it is demanding, he enjoys life and the support of his wife, Katherina, his mother Catherine and children Ronan (12), Aidan (10) and Eimear (6).

Any spare time is spent with family and his passion off-farm is motorsport. The one-time Subaru owner hasn’t given up on the prospect of investing in one again sometime in the future, all going well.

Tirlán would like to congratulate Paul and Katherina and all the Milking For Quality Award winners. The Barry family were this year’s Tirlán Champions with the lowest SCC across the entire Tirlan supplier base.

First Published: 14 November 2022