The Banville family are dairy farmers from Co. Wexford, who operate a\u00a0140-cow spring-calving dairy herd<\/strong>, as well as a tillage enterprise. They farm over 90ha \u2013 44ha of which are on the milking platform \u2013 and the family have been farming the land since 1919. Patrick and Carmel\u2019s son John is currently studying Agricultural Science at Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) and hopes to return home to farm in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The herd\u2019s milk had the lowest total bacterial count (TBC) and cell count of all the finalists, however the judging factored in more than just milk quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Factors such as the farm\u2019s sustainability, facilities and environmental measures all formed part of the judging process. Over the last four years, the farm has cut its carbon footprint by 20%. Patrick explained: \u201cWe focus on increasing the economic breeding index [EBI] of the herd and every \u20ac10 increase on EBI cuts carbon footprint by 3%.\u201d<\/em> The farm spreads 100% of its slurry using a Low Emission Slurry Spreading (LESS) system and also places a focus on using protected urea. The Banvilles first heard about\u00a0Herdwatch\u00a0<\/strong>from a friend and signed up for it at the National Ploughing Championships. Carmel noted: \u201cThe sign up process was really easy and all the data just transferred over.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Commenting on the day-to-day use of the app on the farm, Carmel explained: \u201cWhen we purchase an animal remedy, we just scan a bar code and all the information populates into the Herdwatch app \u2013 it\u2019s super quick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Previously, Patrick did most of the medicine recording and it was all done with pen and paper, which Carmel noted was time consuming. Now she said, \u201cit\u2019s all done while on the go\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Banville\u2019s son John added: \u201cWhen we record a cow that we serve, it will tell you when the cow is due to be dried off, and due to calve. \u201cIt also has \u2018the Watchboard<\/strong>\u2018 feature that tells you when cows are due to repeat, so you know which ones to keep an eye out for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Continuing, Carmel added: \u201cFor Bord Bia inspections, Herdwatch has taken away basically all the work because we record the medicines as we go along through the year, so there\u2019s really nothing to be done before the audit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor farm-to-farm movements <\/strong>we use Herdwatch all the time when selling calves or cull cows. We can simply enter the buyers herd number, select the animals that have been sold and apply for the movement cert \u2013 it\u2019s that easy. All the work is done on the spot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHerdwatch is super easy for\u00a0recording missing tags<\/strong>, we just click on the animal and it\u2019s all done.\u201d<\/em> John added: \u201cThe performance section on the app is brilliant, you just type in a cow tag number and it will give you all the information about her.\u201d<\/em> Carmel outlined: \u201cHaving all the information in relation to an animal is super, for instance we started\u00a0selective dry-cow therapy<\/strong>\u00a0and having the milk-recording results allows us to make decisions on whether a cow will be dried off with sealer only, or a sealer and dry cow tube, so from that point of view having all that data in one app is superb.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Concluding, John said: \u201cThe Herdwatch app is really easy to use. You have all the information you want, I\u2019d recommend it to anyone, it changes the way you go about farming completely.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nIn April 2021, the Banville\u2019s farm was nominated for the National Dairy Council and Kerrygold National Quality Milk Awards, and the Banville\u2019s Barry\u2019s Cross Herd took home first prize in the milk quality category.<\/span><\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
High-quality dairy herd<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"Milk-1280x720\"](\"https:\/\/f.hubspotusercontent20.net\/hubfs\/2865975\/Milk-1280x720.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nHerdwatch for day-to-day management<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cWe record as we go and because we pre-populated the withdrawal dates for instance, all of that automatically updates when you use the remedy, so there\u2019s no getting out a calendar and working out the days.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cRegistering calves on Herdwatch is really simple, you just get the tag, scan the bar code, and it links all the information with Herdwatch. Then a few clicks and you have the calf registered.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cPrior to Herdwatch, it was much more cumbersome applying for a movement cert, whereas now it\u2019s instant and all done and dusted in a few seconds.<\/em><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n