Podcasts about teagasc moorepark

Mike Dineen, a Teagasc researcher whose work focuses on animal nutrition, and Chris Heffernan, who recently completed his PhD in Teagasc Moorepark, join James Dunne on this week's Dairy Edge to discuss the factors affecting milk fat production in dairy cows under pasture-based management systems.   Mike and Chris explain the typical reduction in milk fat during late spring and early summer and outline some results from their recent research project. For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Michael O'Donovan, Head of the Grassland Science Department at Teagasc Moorepark joins James Dunne on this week's Dairy Edge. Michael discusses the grassland performance on Irish dairy farms over the last number of years, how farmers can increase the amount of pasture grown on farm and outlines key decisions that need to be made over the coming weeks to ensure high levels of animal performance over the coming months. For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

With up to 1,500 estimated cases each year in Ireland, causing fertility issues, premature death in calves and other health problems, Dr Cliona Ryan, genetics and genomics postdoc researcher in Teagasc Moorepark, joins us to discuss new improved methods in identifying these issues. For more episodes and information from the Environment Edge, visit the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/environmentedge/

Michael McKeon, Specialist Pig Advisor at Teagasc Moorepark, joins Ciarán Carroll for the latest episode of The Pig Edge with a review of pig and feed prices for 2024 and the outlook for 2025. The Teagasc Outlook 2025, Economic Prospects for Agriculture, is available to view and download at: https://www.teagasc.ie/publications/ For more episodes and information from the Pig Edge podcast go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/pigs/the-pig-edge-podcast/ Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com 

Hazel Costigan from Teagasc Moorepark joins Stuart Childs on this week's Dairy Edge to discuss heifer rearing and the targets associated with it. Hazel references a study done 10 years ago by Laurence Shalloo which put the cost of rearing a heifer at €1,545. A further study by Donagh Berry has shown that it takes 1.63 lactations to cover this cost and this may have increased since then. Hazel says that the only way to manage heifer performance is to weigh them relatively regularly and at a minimum at key times throughout their lifetime to identify stock that are not on target and react to bring them back in line the rest of the group. Hazel highlights the importance of doing this due to the impact in 1st, 2nd and 3rd lactation performance of lighter heifers in a study she did of Moorepark records from 2003 – 2017. Finally, Hazel suggests that farmers weigh both their calves and heifers and act now to address weight deficits sooner rather than later especially as we move towards housing when average daily gain will inevitably drop due to the lower quality of the diet offered relative to the grass diet currently being consumed.   The calf weights excel mentioned is available at:https://www.teagasc.ie/media/website/animals/dairy/CalfWeightReadyReckoner.xls For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Emer Kennedy and Kieran McCarthy from Teagasc Moorepark join Stuart Childs on the latest Dairy Edge to discuss the reduced milking frequency work that is ongoing there. Emer first outlines the reduction in yield that farmers would be likely to see if they implement reduced milking frequencies. The milk solid percentages increase which helps to compensate for the reduced volume. Emer then spoke about SCC and how it changes when the reduced frequencies are being done.  Kieran explains how they manage these groups on the farm and while it is slightly different to a normal commercial farm going onto reduced frequency milking, they still have the same issues to handle when transitioning as commercial farms. Emer and Kieran also highlight what people could do to ease the transition with Emer suggesting that the mindset of the person may be a bigger issue than the mindset of the cow. Finally, Kieran says that this is something all farmers could consider but that they will need to manage their SCC well from the start of lactation. For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

For this week's Grass10 grazing management update, Joseph Dunphy discusses PastureBase data, Dry Matter % and Predicted grass growth, rainfall & soil temperatures for the week.  Plus he highlights the increasing grass growth rates and preparing for autumn grass build-up. Joseph is also joined by Áine Murray, Researcher on nitrogen & clover systems from Teagasc Moorepark to discuss soil mineralisation in 2024.  The link to this week's Grass10 newsletter is: https://bit.ly/Grass10-30thjuly  For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

The Teagasc pig team are in the final stages of preparation for their research event, the Pig Open Day 2024, which will take place at 10am on Wednesday May 22nd in the Paddy O'Keeffe Innovation Centre, Teagasc Moorepark, Fermoy, Co. Cork and 10am Friday May 24th in Ballyhaise Agricultural College, Co. Cavan.  On this bonus episode of the Pig Edge, Ciarán Carroll, Head of Knowledge Transfer, gives an insight into what you can expect on the day.To register in advance for the Teagasc Pig Open Day 2024, just go to:https://bit.ly/49EhmJF  For more episodes and information from the Pig Edge podcast go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/pigs/the-pig-edge-podcast/ Produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com

Dr. Patrick Tuohy, Teagasc Moorepark, joined Mark Gibson, Head of the Teagasc Outreach & Innovation Department, on the latest podcast version of the Signpost Series, to discuss the management of grassland peats.  A questions and answers session took place at the end of the webinar which was facilitated by Teagasc's Pat Murphy. To register for future webinars visit:https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/sustainable-agriculture-webinars/                        For more podcasts from the Signpost Series go to: https://www.teagasc.ie/signpostpodcast/ 

On this episode James Freeman sits down with Edward Healy and John O'Loughlin to have a detailed chat with Mike Egan, Research Officer for Grassland, in Teagasc Moorepark.Mike gives a master class on clover, its impact and how to incorporate it in your sward.The Sod Pod; https://ie.timacagro.com/podcast-the-sod-pod/

Pablo Silva Bolona, mastitis researcher at Teagasc Moorepark, is on this week's Dairy Edge podcast to discuss his research and recommendations into successfully implementing selective dry cow therapy (SDCT) on farms for the drying off season in 2023.Pablo first explains the concept of selective dry cow therapy saying the main risk periods for cows are the two weeks after dry off and the 2 weeks before calving as well as early lactation due to the stress of calving reducing immunity to disease. Individual cow records will be necessary for vets to prescribe correctly so people should milk record as close to drying off as possible as the research conducted on commercial farms by Pablo and his team have shown that the SCC in the final recording is strongly linked to identifying cows that require antibiotic treatment. For those that have not milk recorded yet this year, they should look to start recording before the end of lactation and continue to record in 2024. Alternatively, although a far more laborious way, is to take quarter samples from all cows and get these analysed.Pablo finishes by highlighting that nutritional management of yield is important, with cows dried at

For this week's podcast version of the Let's Talk Dairy webinar series, James Dunne, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, is joined by Tomas Tubritt from Teagasc Moorepark who goes through the Pasture Profit Index and how best to use it to select grass varieties.  To register for future Let's Talk Dairy webinars go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/lets-talk-dairy/ For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

Pat Tuohy, Senior Research officer at Teagasc Moorepark, is on this week's Dairy Edge podcast to discuss the drainage status of grassland peat soils in Ireland. Pat and his colleagues, Lillian O'Sullivan, Conor Bracken and Owen Fenton have recently released a review paper that when accepted into the national inventory by the EPA, will be of great significance in the Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sector of carbon emissions. Pat explains how it can be difficult to have the correct figures in this sector relative to others and gave examples of how you know how many animals are in the country, you know what quantity of diesel was burned and consequently, the figures for emissions are relatively robust.  However, with Ireland being one of only three countries (Denmark and the Netherlands being the others) that are seen as net emitters of carbon from soil, work is ongoing to get better figures to feed into national inventories. It is currently estimated that 345,000ha of land in Ireland is drained peat soils and this is releasing nearly 9.2 million tonnes of CO2 each year. Where there is no knowledge of drainage status, it must be assumed that all the land is drained. This is how the 345,000ha figure was arrived at and Pat and his colleagues conducted a review to see if this really was the case. Pat went on to say that drains would need to be 9 million to nearly half that, it may also have implications under the Land restoration laws that are being proposed.Pat finishes by explaining that work will continue on many fronts to improve and further refine figures for both land areas but also emission factors mentioning the role of the National Agricultural Soil Carbon Observatory (NASCO) which will be working in particular on establishing better emission estimates for many land types under different management conditions across the country.   For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Laurence Shalloo, Head of the Animal & Grassland Research and Innovation Programme at Teagasc Moorepark, joins Stuart Childs on this week's Dairy Edge podcast to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the dairy industry in the forthcoming years. Laurence looks back at challenges that were there in the late 2000s when expansion was beginning to kick off and there were many questions to be answered at many levels at that time. The industry working together came up with the solutions, he says, and this should give us lots of hope for the future also. Laurence went on to say that not everyone was in agreement in dealing with the previous challenges but by getting together and thrashing out the items of concern it led to the solutions being found. Laurence discusses water quality trends and while a recent EPA report isn't looking favourable, Laurence quotes numbers that would suggest there is movement in the right direction, albeit not at the speed that we would like to see. He also spoke about the carbon footprint of Irish dairy which is really low already but we have the scope to drop that further. Research being done currently is reducing the output from the industry as well as the changes in farm practices. Speaking about the labour shortage in the economy as a whole, Laurence talks about reducing the labour demand on farms by becoming more efficient in terms of the labour requirement, but also by being more aware of what dairy farms have to offer in terms of opportunities for people, be they short term or long term opportunities. Finally, Laurence welcomes everyone to attend the Open Day next Tuesday July 4th starting at 8:30am and encourages people to engage as Teagasc want to get feedback from people at the coalface. For more details on the Open Day go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/moorepark-open-day/  For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Brendan Horan, Farm Systems researcher at Teagasc Moorepark, is on this week's Dairy Edge podcast to discuss multi-species swards (MSS) and the reason he and his team are researching them in the multi-milk systems trials at Curtin's Farm. Brendan starts by telling us the policy context for looking at MSS stemming from the Farm to Fork strategy that is looking for reductions in the amount of inputs going into farming systems, to minimise environmental impacts of farming, increase resource use efficiency and increase biodiversity. Following on from the policy piece and the requirement to reduce the nitrogen footprint of the farming system, the third piece of the jigsaw is climate change and how are we going to deal with potentially drier summers and wetter winters.  In that context, multi-species have the potential to reduce the nitrogen requirement as well as offering increased sward diversity that might have the potential to allow us to adapt to changing weather patterns. Brendan went on to say that on the multi-milk trial, multi-species swards are growing similar quantities of forage, showing increases in milk solids output during the mid-season, but very importantly, have the potential to reduce nitrate leaching by 5-10% compared to standard perennial ryegrass swards that are commonplace currently. Finally, Brendan encourages farmers to try some on their farms as farmers will need to learn how to farm these swards and the best way to do this is to try it.  Furthermore, assuming that good perennial ryegrass and clover varieties are used, these swards, while potentially not persisting as multi-species swards, will continue to persist as high quality grass clover swards in the medium to longer term on farms.    For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

Lorna Twomey, Milk Quality PhD Researcher in Teagasc Moorepark, joins Stuart Childs on the latest Dairy Edge podcast to talk about milk quality and the things farmers can do at the end of lactation and the start of the next lactation to ensure good TBC and thermoduric counts. Lorna talks about a good routine, regardless of product choice, and doing the routine well every day of the year. This, if done correctly, will deliver high quality milk. Lorna also stresses the importance of preparing cows for milking especially important for thermoduric counts and again, while this is especially important during the housing period, it is also important throughout the lactation. Finally, Lorna talks about washing the machine and tank well at the end of the milk supply period for the year in order to ‘store it' clean and then washing well again in advance of milk being supplied in the New Year as well as having good communication with you milk processor in relation to that first milk collection to avoid longer than necessary storage periods before collection in the spring. For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

To better inform farmers of the principal causes of lameness and more importantly of the steps that they can take in minimising the incidence of the condition, Teagasc, one of the participating members of the Resilience for Dairy programme is hosting three short farmer-friendly webinars.  For this week's podcast version of the Let's Talk Dairy webinar series, George Ramsbottom, Teagasc Dairy Specialist was joined by Dr. Natasha Browne, Teagasc Moorepark. Natasha has recently completed her PhD in the area of dairy cattle lameness in Ireland.  She presented the results of her studies and identified some practical measures that farmers can adopt to reduce the incidence of lameness in dairy cows at pasture. To register for future Let's Talk Dairy webinars go to:https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/lets-talk-dairy/ For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at:https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

Padraig McCormack, Dairy Advisor in Teagasc Moorepark, joins Stuart Childs on this week's episode of The Dairy edge podcast to speak about the nitrates compliance issues for farmers both derogation and non-derogation before the end of 2022 and in advance of 2023. Padraig reminds farmers of their requirements to complete twenty grass covers for the year where necessary and also to get any outstanding lime requirement dealt with as soon as the weather allows before year end. He also highlights that there are changes coming for those farming under 170kg N/ha that will require them to have soil samples available next year and beyond and how LESS application is becoming a mandatory requirement for farmers under 170 kg N/ha on a phased basis over the next few years. Finally Padraig encourages farmers to sit down over the next few weeks and months and try and gather what info they can for derogation records for 2022.  This might also afford people the opportunity to organised their paperwork for other aspects of farm management such as profit monitor completion and compiling of info for completing tax accounts for 2022 early in 2023.   For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ The Dairy Edge is a co-production with LastCastMedia.com

On this episode John and David set off to the Teagasc Johnstown Castle Open Day; Farming for a Better Future - Technologies for Today and Tomorrow.The lads caught up with many people for a chat.They met with Ellen Fitzpatrick, currently finishing her PhD on grass and clover in Teagasc Moorepark and soon to start a new post in Teagasc Johnstown Castle.Lillian O'Sullivan, research officer in Johnstown Castle working on soil sustainability and land use managementPat Tuohy, research officer in Teagasc Moorepark. Work includes land drainage, soil physical and hydrological properties and farm infrastructure.David Wall, soil scientist, biochemist and enterprise leader with Teagasc based in Johnstown Castle, Co. Wexford.Three of our Grassland Agro Advisors, Lauren Stanley, Ed Healy and Noel Hamell.Liam Woulfe, Managing Director of Grassland Agro also joined the lads to give his insight.

Teagasc is running a weekly Let's Talk Dairy webinar series which is also being made available as a bonus podcast episode. For this week's webinar, Stuart Childs, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, was joined by dairy farmer Martin Connaughton to discuss milking Once-A-Day (OAD) to manage spring workload. Stuart gives a brief overview of ongoing research in Teagasc Moorepark on OAD milking. Martin gave an insight into his farming system and why they decided to move from Twice-A-Day (TAD) to Once-A-Day (OAD) milking, especially during the spring calving period. To register for future Let's Talk Dairy webinars go to: https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/lets-talk-dairy/ For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

Dr. Seamus Kearney, Signpost Programme, and Jonathan Herron, Teagasc Moorepark, joined Pat Murphy on this week's podcast version of the Signpost Series webinar to discuss ‘Farm Specific Mitigation Strategies and Practical Actions to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions on Irish Farms'. A questions and answers session took place at the end of the webinar, which was facilitated by Padraig Foley, Teagasc. To register for future webinars visit: https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/sustainable-agriculture-webinars/ And for more podcasts from the Signpost Series go to: https://www.teagasc.ie/signpostpodcast/

Teagasc is running a weekly Let's Talk Dairy webinar series which is also being made available as a bonus podcast episode. In this webinar, Stuart Childs, Teagasc Dairy Specialist, was joined by Tomás Tubritt, Teagasc Moorepark, to discuss the grazing utilisation star index. Tomás starts by giving an overview of the Pasture Profit Index (PPI) which is a variety selection tool used to select varieties when reseeding. Tomás also gives an introduction to the grazing utilisation star index which was introduced recently. To register for future Let's Talk Dairy webinars go to: https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/lets-talk-dairy/ For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

Pessimism of the Intellect, Optimism of the Will Bill Gates Partnered Chinese To Conduct Gain-Of-Function Research Delta Variant Far Less Deadly than Previous Variants, According to TrialSite Analysis CDC and Media Say 61% of Americans are Vaxxed, but Data Shows it is 32% What Will Segregated Society Look Like for the Unvaxxed? IPCC climate report: Profound changes are underway in Earth's oceans and ice – a lead author explains what the warnings mean Ohio judge orders man to get a COVID-19 vaccine as part of his sentence Youth, the pandemic and a global mental health crisis A Different World Order   Today's Videos 1.  Vaccine Stories  2. A MESSAGE TO THE EDINBURG CISD SCHOOL BOARD 3.AGUIRRE HAWAII COVID WHISTLEBLOWER 4. ARE PEOPLE DYING MISDIAGNOSED? DR. BRYAN ARDIS, DR. REINER FUELLMICH AND DR. WOLFGANG WODARG   Strawberries improve cognition in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of older adults Tufts University, August 8, 2021 According to news originating from Boston, Massachusetts, research stated, “Functional changes in the brain during ageing can alter learning and memory, gait and balance - in some cases leading to early cognitive decline, disability or injurious falls among older adults. Dietary interventions with strawberry (SB) have been associated with improvements in neuronal, psychomotor and cognitive functions in rodent models of ageing.” Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from Tufts University, “We hypothesised that dietary supplementation with SB would improve mobility and cognition among older adults. In this study, twenty-two men and fifteen women, between the ages of 60 and 75 years, were recruited into a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in which they consumed either freeze-dried SB (24 g/d, equivalent to two cups of fresh SB) or a SB placebo for 90 d. Participants completed a battery of balance, gait and cognitive tests at baseline and again at 45 and 90 d of intervention. Significant supplement group by study visit interactions were observed on tests of learning and memory. Participants in the SB group showed significantly shorter latencies in a virtual spatial navigation task (P = 0.020,.p2 = 0.106) and increased word recognition in the California Verbal Learning test (P = 0.014,.p2 = 0.159) across study visits relative to controls. However, no improvement in gait or balance was observed.” According to the news editors, the research concluded: “These findings show that the addition of SB to the diets of healthy, older adults can improve some aspects of cognition, but not gait or balance, although more studies with a larger sample size and longer follow-up are needed to confirm this finding.” This research has been peer-reviewed.   Growing evidence of vitamin K benefits for heart health Edith Cowan University (Australia), August 10, 2021 New Edith Cowan University (ECU) research has found that people who eat a diet rich in vitamin K have up to a 34 percent lower risk of atherosclerosis-related cardiovascular disease (conditions affecting the heart or blood vessels). Researchers examined data from more than 50,000 people taking part in the Danish Diet, Cancer, and Health study over a 23-year period. They investigated whether people who ate more foods containing vitamin K had a lower risk of cardiovascular disease related to atherosclerosis (plaque build-up in the arteries). There are two types of vitamin K found in foods we eat: vitamin K1 comes primarily from green leafy vegetables and vegetable oils while vitamin K2 is found in meat, eggs and fermented foods such as cheese. The study found that people with the highest intakes of vitamin K1 were 21 percent less likely to be hospitalized with cardiovascular disease related to atherosclerosis. For vitamin K2, the risk of being hospitalized was 14 percent lower. This lower risk was seen for all types of heart disease related to atherosclerosis, particularly for peripheral artery disease at 34 percent. ECU researcher and senior author on the study Dr. Nicola Bondonno said the findings suggest that consuming more vitamin K may be important for protection against atherosclerosis and subsequent cardiovascular disease. "Current dietary guidelines for the consumption of vitamin K are generally only based on the amount of vitamin K1 a person should consume to ensure that their blood can coagulate," she said. "However, there is growing evidence that intakes of vitamin K above the current guidelines can afford further protection against the development of other diseases, such as atherosclerosis. "Although more research is needed to fully understand the process, we believe that vitamin K works by protecting against the calcium build-up in the major arteries of the body leading to vascular calcification." University of Western Australia researcher Dr. Jamie Bellinge, the first author on the study, said the role of vitamin K in cardiovascular health and particularly in vascular calcification is an area of research offering promising hope for the future. "Cardiovascular disease remains a leading cause of death in Australia and there's still a limited understanding of the importance of different vitamins found in foodand their effect on heart attacks, strokes and peripheral artery disease," Dr. Bellinge said. "These findings shed light on the potentially important effect that vitamin K has on the killer disease and reinforces the importance of a healthy diet in preventing it." Dr. Bondonno said that while databases on the vitamin K1 content of foods are very comprehensive, there is currently much less data on the vitamin K2 content of foods. Furthermore, there are 10 forms of vitamin K2 found in our diet and each of these may be absorbed and act differently within our bodies. "The next phase of the research will involve developing and improving databases on the vitamin K2 content of foods. "More research into the different dietary sources and effects of different types of vitamin K2 is a priority," Dr. Bondonno said. Additionally, there is a need for an Australian database on the vitamin K content of Australian foods (e.g. vegemite and kangaroo). To address this need, Dr. Marc Sim, a collaborator on the study, has just finished developing an Australian database on the vitamin K content of foods which will be published soon. The paper "Vitamin K intake and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease in the Danish Diet Cancer and Health Study' was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association. High BMI causes depression, both physical and social factors play a role University of Exeter (UK), August 9, 2021 A large-scale study provides further evidence that being overweight causes depression and lowers wellbeing and indicates both social and physical factors may play a role in the effect. With one in four adults estimated to be obese in the UK, and growing numbers of children affected, obesity is a global health challenge. While the dangers of being obese on physical health is well known, researchers are now discovering that being overweight can also have a significant impact on mental health.  The new study, published in Human Molecular Genetics, sought to investigate why a body of evidence now indicates that higher BMI causes depression. The team used genetic analysis, known as Mendelian Randomisation, to examine whether the causal link is the result of psychosocial pathways, such as societal influences and social stigma, or physical pathways, such as metabolic conditions linked to higher BMI. Such conditions include high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. In research led by the University of Exeter and funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences, the team examined genetic data from more than 145,000 participants from the UK Biobank with detailed mental health data available. In a multifaceted study, the researchers analyzed genetic variants linked to higher BMI, as well as outcomes from a clinically-relevant mental health questionnaire designed to assess levels of depression, anxiety and wellbeing. To examine which pathways may be active in causing depression in people with higher BMI, the team also interrogated two sets of previously discovered genetic variants. One set of genes makes people fatter, yet metabolically healthier, meaning they were less likely to develop conditions linked to higher BMI, such as high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. The second set of genes analyzed make people fatter and metabolically unhealthy, or more prone to such conditions. The team found little difference between the two sets of genetic variants, indicating that both physical and social factors play a role in higher rates of depression and poorer wellbeing. Lead author Jess O'Loughlin, at the University of Exeter Medical School, said: "Obesity and depression are both major global health challenges, and our study provides the most robust evidence to date that higher BMI causes depression. Understanding whether physical or social factors are responsible for this relationship can help inform effective strategies to improve mental health and wellbeing. Our research suggests that being fatter leads to a higher risk of depression, regardless of the role of metabolic health. This suggests that both physical health and social factors, such as social stigma, both play a role in the relationship between obesity and depression." Lead author Dr. Francesco Casanova, of the University of Exeter Medical School, said, "This is a robust study, made possible by the quality of UK Biobank data. Our research adds to a body of evidence that being overweight causes depression. Finding ways to support people to lose weight could benefit their mental health as well as their physical health." The study, titled "Higher adiposity and mental health: causal inference using Mendelian Randomisation," is published in Human Molecular Genetics.   Protective effects of saffron compound against amyloid beta-induced neurotoxicity Guangdong Medical University (China), August 4, 2021 According to news reporting from Dongguan, People's Republic of China, research stated, “Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a most common neurodegenerative disorder worldwide. Because of its complex pathogenesis, the prevention and therapies of AD still are a severe challenge.” The news correspondents obtained a quote from the research from Guangdong Medical University, “Evidence suggested that crocin, the major component of saffron, exhibited neuroprotective effects in AD. As such, in this study, N2a/APP695swe cells were enrolled to investigate the effects of crocin on endogenous A beta-induced neurotoxicity. Crocin (100 and 200 mu M) could ameliorate cytotoxicity according to CCK-8 assay and reduce apoptosis in line with Hoechst 33,342 staining and Annexin V-FITC/PI double staining in N2a/APP695swe cells. Reduced ROS generation and elevated MMP were found in N2a/APP695swe cells treated with crocin (100 and 200 mu M). Additionally, crocin at concentrations of 100 and 200 mu M inhibited the release of cytochrome and attenuated caspases-3 activity in N2a/APP695swe cells. Furthermore, succinylation, crotonylation, 2-hydroxyisobutyrylation, malonylation, and phosphorylation were significantly reduced, while a slight increase of acetylation was found in 100-mu M crocin treated N2a/APP695swe cells.” According to the news reporters, the research concluded: “Taken together, crocin may be a promising natural product candidate for the effective cure of AD.” This research has been peer-reviewed.   Microbes have potential to reverse aging in the brain University College Cork (Ireland), August 10, 2021 Microbiome Ireland, a world leading SFI Research Centre, have found that aging-associated changes in the immune system of old mice were reversed by the transfer of gut microbiota from the young mice. The researchers saw improved behavior of older mice in several cognitive tests for learning, memory and anxiety. Credit: Clare Keogh Research from APC Microbiome Ireland (APC) at University College Cork (UCC) published today in the leading international scientific journal Nature Agingintroduces a novel approach to reverse aspects of aging-related deterioration in the brain and cognitive function via the microbes in the gut. As our population ages one of the key global challenges is to develop strategies to maintain healthy brain function. This ground-breaking  research opens up a potentially new therapeutic avenues  in the form of microbial-based interventions to slow down brain aging and associated cognitive problems.  The work was carried out by researchers in the Brain-Gut-Microbiota lab in APC led by Prof John F. Cryan, Vice President for Research & Innovation, University College Cork as well as a Principal Investigator at APC Microbiome Ireland  an SFI Research Centre,  based in in University College Cork and Teagasc Moorepark. There is a growing appreciation of the importance of the microbes in the gut on all aspects of physiology and medicine. In this latest mouse study the authors show that by transplanting microbes from young into old animals they could rejuvenate aspects of brain and immune function. Prof John F. Cryan, says "Previous research published by the APC and other groups internationally has shown that the  gut microbiome plays a key role in aging and the aging process. This new research is a potential game changer , as we have established that the microbiome can be harnessed to reverse age-related brain deterioration. We also see evidence of improved learning ability and cognitive function". Although very exciting Cryan cautions that "it is still early days and much more work is needed to see how these findings could be translated in humans".   APC Director Prof Paul Ross stated that "This research of Prof. Cryan and colleagues further demonstrates the importance of the gut microbiome in many aspects of health, and particularly across across the brain/gut axis where brain functioning can be positively influenced. The study opens up possibilities in the future to modulate gut microbiota as a therapeutic target to influence brain health" The study was led by co-first authors Dr. Marcus Boehme along with Ph.D. students Katherine E. Guzzetta, and Thomaz Bastiaansen. Even quick meditation aids cognitive skills Yale University & Swarthmore College, August 7, 2018  College students who listen to a 10-minute meditation tape complete simple cognitive tasks more quickly and accurately than peers who listen to a "control" recording on a generic subject, researchers at Yale University and Swarthmore College report. The study, published in the journal Frontiers of Neuroscience, shows even people who have never meditated before can benefit from even a short meditation practice. "We have known for awhile that people who practice meditation for a few weeks or months tend to perform better on cognitive tests, but now we know you don't have to spend weeks practicing to see improvement," said Yale's Hedy Kober, associate professor of psychiatry and psychology and senior author of the study. The research team headed by Kober and Catherine Norris at Swarthmore randomly divided college students into two groups. One group listened to a 10-minute recording on meditation prior to performing cognitive tests and the second group listened to a similarly produced tape about sequoia trees. Both groups were then given simple tasks designed to measure cognitive dexterity. Those who listened to the meditation recording performed significantly better, across two studies. There was one exception, however. Those who scored highest in measurements of neuroticism—"I worry all the time"—did not benefit from listening to the meditation tape. "We don't know if longer meditation sessions, or multiple sessions, would improve their cognitive scores, and we look forward to testing that in future studies," Kober said.   Physical activity protects children from the adverse effects of digital media on their weight later in adolescence University of Helsinki (Finland), August 9, 2021   Children's heavy digital media use is associated with a risk of being overweight later in adolescence. Physical activity protects children from the adverse effects of digital media on their weight later in adolescence. A recently completed study shows that six hours of leisure-time physical activity per week at the age of 11 reduces the risk of being overweight at 14 years of age associated with heavy use of digital media. Obesity in children and adolescents is one of the most significant health-related challenges globally. A study carried out by the Folkhälsan Research Center and the University of Helsinki investigated whether a link exists between the digital media use of Finnish school-age children and the risk of being overweight later in adolescence. In addition, the study looked into whether children's physical activity has an effect on this potential link. The results were published in the Journal of Physical Activity and Health. More than six hours of physical activity per week appears to reverse adverse effects of screen time The study involved 4,661 children from the Finnish Health in Teens (Fin-HIT) study. The participating children reported how much time they spent on sedentary digital media use and physical activity outside school hours. The study demonstrated that heavy use of digital media at 11 years of age was associated with a heightened risk of being overweight at 14 years of age in children who reported engaging in under six hours per week of physical activity in their leisure time. In children who reported being physically active for six or more hours per week, such a link was not observed. The study also took into account other factors potentially impacting obesity, such as childhood eating habits and the amount of sleep, as well as the amount of digital media use and physical activity in adolescence. In spite of the confounding factors, the protective role of childhood physical activity in the connection between digital media use in childhood and being overweight later in life was successfully confirmed. "The effect of physical activity on the association between digital media use and being overweight has not been extensively investigated in follow-up studies so far," says Postdoctoral Researcher Elina Engberg. Further research is needed to determine in more detail how much sedentary digital media use increases the risk of being overweight, and how much physical activity is needed, and at what intensity, to ward off such a risk. In this study, the amount of physical activity and use of digital media was reported by the children themselves, and the level of their activity was not surveyed, so there is a need for further studies. "A good rule of thumb is to adhere to the physical activity guidelines for children and adolescents, according to which school-aged children and adolescents should be physically active in a versatile, brisk and strenuous manner for at least 60 minutes a day in a way that suits the individual, considering their age," says Engberg. In addition, excessive and extended sedentary activity should be avoided.

Dr James Humphreys, Principal Research Officer, Teagasc Moorepark, joins Mark Gibson, Teagasc ConnectEd, on this week's podcast version of the Signpost Series webinar to discuss commercial dairy farming without fertiliser N. The presentation was followed by a questions and answers session facilitated by Pat Murphy, Head of Teagasc Environment KT Programme. For more shows and information from the series and to register for future webinars visit: https://www.teagasc.ie/corporate-events/sustainable-agriculture-webinars/

Teagasc is running a weekly Let's Talk Dairy webinar series which is also being made available afterwards as a bonus podcast episode. In this webinar, Stuart Childs is joined by Laurence Shalloo, Katie Starsmore and Ben Larhart who are working on greenhouse gas emissions at Teagasc Moorepark. For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/

Genetics can provide Ireland with the means to reduce the emissions from, and increase the productivity of, our national dairy herd. This will be more important than ever as the dairy industry comes under pressure from the Covid-19 crisis. Sinead McParland, a quantitative geneticist at Teagasc Moorepark, describes how this can be achieved and incorporated into the Economic Breeding Index. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/sean-duke/message

Emer Kennedy joins Emma-Louise Coffey to discuss the Once-A-Day milking experiment at Teagasc Moorepark. Emer explains the different variations of OAD milking, including OAD milking short term in early lactation (from 2-8 weeks) and long term for the full lactation. She documents the various measurements that were carried out including milk production, mastitis, SCC, udder firmness, udder leakage, body weight, BCS and locomotion. Emer acknowledges individual farmers concerns in relation to reduced milk yield. Short term OAD will reduce daily milk yield by 22-24% but is shown to recover immediately once returned to twice-a-day milking, with a small impact on annual milk yield.  Emer also emphasised the merit of short term OAD milking in early lactation when the labour demand on dairy farms is at peak. For more information:https://www.teagasc.ie/media/website/publications/2020/Emer-Kennedy---Once-a-Day-Milking-Conference-2020.pdf For more episodes and information from the Dairy Edge podcast go to:  https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/ 

Preparation is key to minimising workload and stress that dairy farmers often experience on farms during the spring period and labour researcher Marion Beecher from Teagasc Moorepark highlights some of the ways that labour demand can be reduced. Six-week calving rate is increase steadily on dairy farming meaning there are more cows calving in a shorter period of time putting a greater demand on resources such as facilities and labour. Practices during the calving season such as once-a-day milking for the month of February, night time feeding, getting cows out to grass, once-a-day feeding of calves from 3 weeks and contracting out tractor work are all practices that will reduce the demand on labour across the spring. A pre-calving checklist created by Mark Cassidy and Teagasc gives guidelines for a number of jobs to be completed in the months of December and January when the farm is quiet and there is free time. The checklist includes tasks to be completed in the calving area, calf shed, milking parlour, grazing, animal health and office work. Simply servicing the milking machine, calving and calf pens are ready, ensuring the calving kit is in place and animal health products are on farm for the start of calving will mean dairy farmers can focus on the care of cows and calves for the calving season. From more information: https://www.teagasc.ie/media/website/publications/2015/Be-Prepared-for-Calving_06022015.pdf https://www.teagasc.ie/media/website/publications/2018/IGA-paper-2018_Pat-Clarke.pdf

As we reach the end of the calendar year, we thought it was a good opportunity for the Dairy Edge to take a look at the major events that impacted on the dairy industry across the year of 2018.  Pat Dillon, Head of Animal & Grassland Research & Innovation and Michael Egan, Grassland Researcher, both from Teagasc Moorepark took us on a journey that started back in January. Pat reflected on the milk produced in the country this year, with a national figure of 7.6 billion litres, Irish dairy farmers have achieved Food Harvest targets ahead of time. Looking at the various weather events, which impacted the spring and summer significantly, and while autumn came good, farmers failed to catch up on lost ground earlier in the year.  Michael Egan explained the effect of the various weather events on grass production and encouraged farmers to take more control over their grassland management decisions and be proactive rather than reactive to variation. Pat quantified the impact of the year on overall profitability, with net profit declining by 5 cent/litre. For the average farm producing 400,000 litres it is a reduction in income to the tune of €20,000. How do you plan to regain this money in profit next year?  Pat and Michael finished by discussing their lessons learned from 2018 and suggest some New Year's Resolutions that dairy farmers should consider for the year to come. For more information: https://www.teagasc.ie/media/website/publications/2018/Dealing-with-Weather-Risks---Tom-O'Dwyer-&-Joe-Patton---National-Dairy-Conference-2018.pdf

In this week's podcast, we hear from Teagasc Moorepark, award-winning malting barley growers, Matt Carthy MEP, New Zealand's deputy leader, the father of biological farming and exhibitors at Eurotier.

In this week's podcast, we hear from Teagasc Moorepark, award-winning malting barley growers, Matt Carthy MEP, New Zealand's deputy leader, the father of biological farming and exhibitors at Eurotier.

Tonight on FarmLand episode 9, independent TD Michael Fitzmaurice and Green Party leader, Eamon Ryan, go head-to-head on the country’s strides to hit its renewable energy and carbon emission targets. John Sweeney, leading climatologist at Maynooth University, warns that biomass production is just a “short-term” solution to Bord na Mona’s power plant challenges. Meanwhile, farmer and contractor Pat Farrelly tells reporter Sylvester Phelan of his experience of growing willow in Co. Meath. Plus, as attention turns to the winter drying-off period, Tom O’Dwyer, the head of Dairy Knowledge Transfer at Teagasc Moorepark offers advice on how to get the best results. While Laois dairy farmer Pauraic Spencer outlines his plans for the coming weeks to reporter Niall Claffey. Our video broadcast of this episode and all our previous episodes are available here: www.agriland.ie/farmland

Listeners are reminded that a Teagasc/ Dairygold Joint Programmein conjunction with Animal health Ireland , a Dry Cow Event will be held on the land of Mr. Kevin Downing, Farranastig, Whitechurch ( Dairygold Milk Quality Award Winner 2017) on Tuesday October 23rd. From 10.30am to Ipm. All topical animal health issues related to dry care/ skills, covered. The 36th. National Dairy Show has opened this morning, Saturday at The Green Glens Arena , Millstreet. Mr. John Kirby review the show and its many Attractions for rural and urban visitors.. Tillage review with Ciaran Collins , Tillage specialist , Teagasc Moorepark, Fermoy. Shane Murphy on the big increase in Angus registrations. Anthony O’Sullivan on book launch at the Independence Museum in Kilmurray. on Friday 26th. October at 8pm in the Heritage Room at the Independence Museum.. “ The Village Schools”. All welcome to attend. Plus many other items. BROADCAST TECHNICAL WORK AND PODCAST PRODUCTION BY JOHN FOOTT AT C103 STUDIOS , MALLOW, COUNTY CORK , IRELAND. FARM TALK IS KINDLY SPONSORED BY FARMER-OWNED AND OPERATED DAIRYGOLD CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETY LIMITED. THE PROGRAMME IS RESEARCHED, EDITED, PRODUCED AND PRESENTED BY JOHN O’CONNOR. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Are robots the future of milking? On this weeks episode of The Dairy Edge podcast we speak to Caroline O'Sullivan, manager of the robotic unit at Teagasc Moorepark and Caroline gives an insight into how robotic milking systems work including the number of milkings robots are capable of per day, the ideal number of cows per robot and what her work looks like from day to day. Caroline emphasises the importance of grassland management in robotic systems, aiding the movement of cows from the paddock to the robot throughout day and night. Finally Caroline explains the current feeding and milk production of the dairy cows, where cows are producing 2.1 kg milk solids from a predominately grazed grass diet. For more: teagasc.ie

This week's episode of The Dairy Edge podcast focuses on feeding dairy cows in early lactation. Brian Garry, Nutrition Specialist from Teagasc Moorepark, explains the rapidly increasing energy requirements of dairy cows after calving, the intake capacity of freshly calved cows and the ideal diet to maximise energy intake. Aidan Lawless, Farm Manager of the Teagasc Johnstown Castle Dairy Herd gives a breakdown of the mixed calving dairy herd at Johnstown Castle. He talks us through the diet and milk production of the autumn calving herd and gives an insight into how their breeding season is going so far. Further information on the topics discussed on this week's show include: Feeding the Dairy Cow https://www.teagasc.ie/media/website/animals/dairy/FeedingDiaryCow.pdf

On this week's show, we focus on labour and grassland management. Pat Clarke from Teagasc Athenry has tips on how to reduce the heavy spring workload. He also outlines a labour survey that includes over 1,000 dairy farms (75 discussion groups), explaining the differences in work practices between the average and top 5% farmers included in the study. Kieran Kelleher from Curtin's Research Farm, Teagasc Moorepark, explains what preparation is being put in place for the upcoming calving season. At Curtin's Farm, 150 cows will calf this spring, with 130 cows (86%) of the herd calving in the first 6 weeks of the calving season. And John Maher, Campaign Manager of Grass 10, explains the initiative and sets out practical steps that famers can take to reach the Grass 10 objectives of 10 tonne grass DM per ha/year utilised and 10 grazings per paddocks/year. For more: teagasc.ie

After 18 months of crisis, Co Cavan pig farmer Frank Brady is weeks away from having to close down his farm. He spoke with Irish Farmers Journal news editor Patrick Donohoe.On Tuesday, Phelim O'Neill met economist Dr Siemen Van Berkum from Wageningen University in The Netherlands at a European Parliament discussion panel on the trade imbalance between the EU and Mercosur countries.Macra na Feirme is holding its AGM this Saturday, with president Sean Finan now mid-way through his two-year term. Irish Farmers Journal journalist Amy Fitzgibbons asked him about the challenges facing young farmers and the organisation itself under his tenure.Micheál O’Leary from Teagasc Moorepark told the recent Irish Grassland Association's beef conference that while most farmers are good at measuring grass growth, they must get better when it comes to making critical decisions. He answers William Conlon's questions.The event’s overseas guest speaker was Welsh suckler and sheep farmer Glasnant Morgan. He told William Conlon about his experience mentoring young farmers.Aine Hennessy meets two farmers whose work and life have changed since Concern Worldwide rolled out an irrigation project in Duguna Fango, Ethiopia.Irish Farmers Journal northern editor David Wright interviews Barclay Bell, the Ulster Farmers Union's newly elected president.Judges from the UK's Great Taste awards visited Cashel last week to sample hundreds of Irish products. There, Irish Country Living editor Mairead Lavery met butcher Pat Whelan of the Tipperary Food Producers Network and Great Taste judge John Farrand of the Guild of Fine Food.

After 18 months of crisis, Co Cavan pig farmer Frank Brady is weeks away from having to close down his farm. He spoke with Irish Farmers Journal news editor Patrick Donohoe.On Tuesday, Phelim O'Neill met economist Dr Siemen Van Berkum from Wageningen University in The Netherlands at a European Parliament discussion panel on the trade imbalance between the EU and Mercosur countries.Macra na Feirme is holding its AGM this Saturday, with president Sean Finan now mid-way through his two-year term. Irish Farmers Journal journalist Amy Fitzgibbons asked him about the challenges facing young farmers and the organisation itself under his tenure.Micheál O’Leary from Teagasc Moorepark told the recent Irish Grassland Association's beef conference that while most farmers are good at measuring grass growth, they must get better when it comes to making critical decisions. He answers William Conlon's questions.The event’s overseas guest speaker was Welsh suckler and sheep farmer Glasnant Morgan. He told William Conlon about his experience mentoring young farmers.Aine Hennessy meets two farmers whose work and life have changed since Concern Worldwide rolled out an irrigation project in Duguna Fango, Ethiopia.Irish Farmers Journal northern editor David Wright interviews Barclay Bell, the Ulster Farmers Union's newly elected president.Judges from the UK's Great Taste awards visited Cashel last week to sample hundreds of Irish products. There, Irish Country Living editor Mairead Lavery met butcher Pat Whelan of the Tipperary Food Producers Network and Great Taste judge John Farrand of the Guild of Fine Food.