Stephen Harte

Stephen Harte is a dairy farmer at Ballintober, near Kinsale in West Cork, milking 70 cows (in addition to spring calving) on 100 acres bought by his grandparents Henry and Susan Robertson in the 1940s. 

 

Married to Ann with whom he has twin sons Alex and Tom (12), Stephen took over the farm from his Aunt in 2008. 

 

“Depending on the time of the year, I also have calves and replacement heifers here,” said Stephen, whose main herd is composed of the Meuse Rhine Issel (MRI) breed, first imported into Ireland in the early 1970s. 

 

“It’s a dual-purpose breed for beef and dairying originated in the Netherlands (and Germany) and is named after The Netherlands’ three main rivers and the reason I have them is that I get a good price for them as calves and for culled cows. My parents also run a small farm where they take some calves, rear them as stores and get a good price for them. It’s a very healthy breed; they’ve got good hooves, there’s easy calving with them and it’s far easier to look after 10, 15 healthy cows than you’d look after one sick cow.” 

In August 2016, when the time came to upgrade the milking parlour, the Hartes went down the robotic route in the guise of the Lely Astronaut A4.

 

“The robot represented the future.”  

“I felt installing the robot represented the future,” said Stephen. “Someone put it to me that the milking parlour was a once in a generation development, which was certainly the case on our own farm given that my Grandfather and Aunt both built parlours. But I felt the robot was what we required looking towards the future.” 

 

During the first autumn using the Lely system, Stephen admitted that “there was a good bit of work when it came to getting the cows moving, getting them in and out to the robot and sweeping paddocks but once they calved in the spring time (2017), the whole system began to work flawlessly. The cows began to move very well, in and out of the field and things have run very smoothly for us ever since.” 

 

The flexibility that the Lely Astronaut and Grazeway provides is among the primary benefits that Stephen has noted over the past seven years. 

 

“Nothing clashes with milking times because there is no milking time as such anymore,” he said. “This means I’m far freer when it comes to people visiting the farm, making deliveries and collections. It’s created a lot more family time for me as well as nothing clashes with milking anymore, so that’s been a hugely positive change."

Reducing stress and enhancing free time 

Stephen continued: “If we’re on a weekend away as a family, my parents look after things for us on the farm when it comes to changing fences and checking the robot. And while they wouldn’t be too tech savvy, I can talk them through any queries they have over the phone. If I had a conventional parlour, my parents couldn’t keep the farm running if we were all away for a few days but the robot has made managing the farm a lot less onerous.” 

 

The Lely system has also improved farm safety levels, said Stephen. “You’re not as close to the cows in the milking parlour and it’s very beneficial when it comes to dealing with new heifers who can be potentially dangerous to deal with in a conventional milking parlour: the robot takes the kicking where once the milker did so that’s been a big change. I’d be quite happy to let younger people deal with troublesome heifers in a robot, something I’d have never considered in the older milking parlour.” 

 

“During the day, my son Alex helps with moving fences, allocating fresh grass to the cows and also washes down the robot. He also changes the milk filters, checking the cows and keeping himself busy by going through all the daily duties you have to do on a farm.” 

 

According to Alex: “I’ve always been interested in farming. I love being outdoors, I love learning about how everything works and I love helping my Dad on the farm every day. For me, farming is fun and it never feels like something I’ve got to worry about. Moving fences would be my first job most days. I then go into the shed where the robot is and there’s a checklist up on the wall which I always go through. Then I go down to the calf shed and feed the calves, after that I go into the big shed, give the cows silage, scrape them out and lime the cubicles. 

 

“After that, I go back to the robot and wash it down and an hour later, I change the milk filter and give the robot another wash.” 

 

When asked what he’d do if he found himself unexpectedly in charge of the farm and needing a question answered, Alex replied: “The first thing I’d do would be to ring the Lely Center in Mitchelstown and I know they’d help me.” 

 

Stephen believes anyone considering the robotic route should visit several farms and talk to as many farmers as possible, thus providing the fullest possible picture about the options and solutions which Lely can provide. “That’s the best way you’ll discover what works best for you,” he said. 

Reliability of Lely Center Mitchelstown

 Regarding the service provided by Lely Center Mitchelstown, Stephen happily stated: “I couldn’t fault them in any way. Lely Center Mitchelstown is always at the other end of the phone, 24 hours a day and have been very helpful to us when it comes to rectifying matters over the phone. In the event of something more serious arising which requires a call-out, they’re always out very quickly."

 

 “In the years that the Lely Astronaut has been running, it has never been down for any more than a couple of hours, which speaks volumes for how efficient and reliable is.”

 

 Alex is looking forward to fully operating the Lely Astronaut – when he’s a little bit older, that is. “I’m really excited about using it because everyone who has milked cows in the past, even my Dad until a few years ago, were always tired because they had to be up at six o’clock in the morning. But because of the way the robot works, I won’t need to be up at that time, which is good news for me!”