Poultry in motion
November 27, 2011
The poultry industry is strong throughout Ireland, with roughly 3,000 people employed in various aspects of the business. Chairman of the Poultry Group is Clones native Alo Mohan, who spoke to Monaghan's Match about his role in the industry and the impact it has on the county in general.
Alo Mohan originally hails from Clones, Co. Monaghan but has resided in Redhills, Co Cavan since he bought a poultry farm in the area during the mid-nineties.
Cavan and Monaghan are the heartland of traditional Irish chicken farming country and Alo was brought up by his parents on a poultry farm, where he developed a passion for the industry which he has worked in all his life. He lives on his ever expanding farm with his wife Yvonne and three children and his parents started poultry farming in the 1960s.
He admits that he has always enjoyed poultry and got deeper into it because of the joy and interest in the industry. Alo is currently Chairman of the Poultry Group within the IFA and thus represents all chicken farmers throughout Ireland.
"I have a passion for poultry farming and I suppose it's in the blood," said Alo. "It is a very complex business and one that takes a lot of attention to detail, given all the rules and regulations that are in place."
Having built a new poultry farm in Redhills, Alo is proud of the quality of his farm and the extra dimension that Carton Brothers brings to the infrastructure of the farm.
The Carton Brothers are the company that produce Manor Farm chicken and is one of the oldest family-owned companies in Ireland, dating back to back to 1775 when it was first born in the very heart of trading in the Dublin markets.
"We have worked hard over the years to build up the farm and now we would go through seven crops of birds per year, which is in the region of 150,000 birds. They chickens come to us when they are one-day old from a hatchery farm after they have being laid on point-to-lay farms before we send them for processing in Shercock.
"The poultry industry is very much an indigenous business as all profits stay within the country and there are up to 800,000 birds processed in Shercock every week, so that gives you an indication of how big a business the poultry industry is."
The guidelines laid down by the company are very rigorous and are constantly supervised daily by Alo himself and also by regular visits from the Carton Brothers Farms Advisor, who also continually checks on the welfare of the birds.
The feed diet that the birds eat comes from the Carton Brothers Chicken only Feed Mill and this feed constituent changes depending on the age of the birds.
"The birdhouse would be built to the highest standards and it has been approved by the relevant authorities. Health and Safety is a big issue and the welfare of the birds is very much to the fore."
Alo has been chairman of the Carton Growers Group for the past three years, while and in 2010 saw him begin a four-year term as chairman of the IFA's Poultry Group. They are roles that he very much enjoys and ones that require a lot of work to make sure everything is on order from his end.
"I like the role for a number of reasons and one of those is that it gives me the chance to interact with people and work closely with people involved in the industry," he stated.
Alo admits that importing poultry into the country is a situation that he feels is damaging the industry within Ireland and its something he believes should be changed.
"It is the biggest grip that I would have in the industry," he stated.
"Poultry that is being imported is of a lower standard that they ones that are produced here. Most of the major retailers sell Irish chickens, but Lidl do not as they buy sterling. The industry is regulated to the last, but it is doing us no favours when some places decide to import."
The Bord Bia and Department of Agriculture required paperwork must be filled out daily. Because of the nature of looking after chickens this is a job that runs 24 hours a day and seven days a week which makes it difficult to take a break without huge support and Alo is grateful to his wife Yvonne for all her support over the years.
"Yvonne has been a great source over the years and as there is just the two of us working on the farm, it means we spend a lot of time together," he said.
Recently, Alo became a member of Coras Beostoic agus Feola - the Irish Meat and Livestock Board - which has added to his already busy schedule.
"I'm on the Meat and Livestock board as well now for the past two years, so there has been no shortage of work to do for me recently.
"Times are tough, but we've still improved a lot of things in this country. Salmonella was a big problem at one point and now we have one of the lowest rates in Europe. We're also putting training in place for poultry farmers and we are looking into setting up a Poultry Council of Ireland."
Alo enjoys combining his many duties as it keeps him busy. His involvement with the IFA means he is keen to help out small farmers with low margins in this country, as he continues to fight their cause.
"It is about representing the agriculture sector as a whole, every farmer be they big or small. Margins are so tight that we have to ensure that farmers are being looked after as it is a vital part of our economy," explained Alo, who also works hard within COPA..
Outside of farming, Alo enjoys reading books and following current affairs. Soccer and football are his favourite sports. He also supports Clones FC which is the oldest club in the Republic of Ireland. 2010 sees the club 125 years old.
Alo is also a member of the local Redhills GAA club and supplied the land for the club to purchase and develop.
Even though his three children are still very young, he admits that they are already showing an interest in Gaelic Games.
"We would be members of the local club and we try to support them in anyway we can. Our eldest lad is getting to an age where he is showing an interest in playing football. I'm a Monaghan man at heart, but I'd have no problem with him playing for Cavan," he concluded.
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