 Now great news this week for Dunnegall in that the FBD young farmer of the year is actually from the county from Letter Kenney well or just outside or at least that's where his farm is Ballyard just down the road and he's a sheep farmer This is the the first time I think that the young farmer of the year is from Dunnegall And he was also named category award winners for land mobility So I'm glad to say that the winner now Dwayne Shields has joined us in the studio Dwayne congratulations to you first of all Thank you very much Sean. Good afternoon. Good afternoon and land mobility. What what what is that for? What explain that to me? So I suppose that's making the use of whatever lands available to you making the best use it Getting the most productive production out of it and most productive to make use that land Maybe not only land land that you're renting or leasing and taking the most out of that there Okay maximizing it maximizing out there and getting the most out of it yet, right? you're a sheep farmer and One or two farms that you have two lease farms and then our own farm, okay So you have your hands full in with the sheep And you have your hands full doubly as well because you your lecture in agricultural sciences at ATU I don't need to use this last September so we're into our second year now down there Teaching the honours for you the ag science degree down there. How's that? Good. Good. Very enjoyable Which do you enjoy most the teaching or the sheep farming the farming? I think it's kind of nice to a mix of both them and get out of the farm clothes going to the teaching for a while and then What I suppose it's great being a teacher in that you're able you've you've hands-on knowledge Of a lot of the stuff that you're chatting about and stuff that you're teaching I it's nice that you can give examples not in your teaching things nice to be able to work back and give examples of How things are done or how you've done something maybe learn from them examples and if you have an example for them It's maybe easier for them to understand the how it works or how it should be there. Yeah, and And now your profile will increase with this one So they'll definitely know for sure, you know What you do and and understand you're chatting from experience There's a there's quite a process to go through to to get to even get to the final here So first thing maybe I got an email first to say you've been nominated for you've been entered to it And then there's 50 then interviewed first 50 then is interviewed that's an online interview and then the select 15 semi-finalists from that the 15 semi-finalists then went to Port Leish for interviews. So it around interviews two weeks ago in Port Leish 40 months 45 minutes and then the select six from that and then we go Just like go to the Radisson blue on choose to there and the final six was interviewed there then Okay, for the one or down here picked it as a winner on Tuesday Yeah, right and A lot of a lot of questions like they They dig deep they do a definitely do I they didn't leave too many stones and turn there's a bit of pressure on the last interview There was an hour and 10 or 15 minutes like go through everything your productivity your accounts What you do and what and what steps you're using to be innovative in the farm What you're doing to help the environment farm safety Want to see your output Where it's come first of all this you're expected to have all the answers all the facts all the figures I know that obviously did Seem to do it. I went very well So did you I was unexpected and the the land mobility award that separate that separate yes, so that's one sector of six sectors first and That came from the sector so the six sectors came from the semi-finalist the 15 and semi-finalist That interview is to get the six sectors like last year the six finalists. There's five of them dairy farmers So the sector winners come from the semi-final and then the highest six marked out of semi-final goes out or it goes into the final Then okay, so I'm the last four winners have come from dairy farmers. So it's a bit of a change I'm a bit of a surprise. There's a sheep farmer And did they tell you what they were impressed with or he just announced as a winner just now as a winner Talking to the judges after or the entry panel after they can't help me Going ahead of what things so like we're putting in multi species there now for five years and that's right multi species sword So using alternative forage to fix nitrogen into the soil that you're not putting on as much fertilizer It's kind of like things in the fertilizer boom there last year But there's still the news this week that there's grants. Hi, there's grants. There's grants last year for the big grants This is our fifth year didn't know if we're back in a rotation background some of the grounds done for a second time That's so I've seen about it in New Zealand when I was out there in 2018, okay, and And what's what sort of things what does that involve exactly? So same as receding a field with grass You just put in chickpea plantain and clover along with it And the plantain the chickpea then they're maybe taking nutrients from further down the soil Taking that up break in soil pans and that taking them nutrients that if there comes a dry spell or if Ground dries out early in the year. They're taking the nutrients up from deeper down the soil And they also have health benefits in so you get away with there's natural tannins in them So you're getting away with less warmers. There's a big problem with antibiotic resistance in the country or in the world And yeah, you're getting away with less warmers. They have tant natural tannins in them that Killer prevent the animal being affected with worms or reduce the amount of worms are affected with so you're getting used less warmers less antibiotics and So it means that You have to warm you can get away with less warmers in the shape and less fertilizer. That's fertilizer so the land The clover you're putting in is fixing the nitrogen out of that atmosphere and making it available to the grass plant So by under just that clover then you're getting away with less fertilizer to you And you implanted close to rivers there like one of the farms are over and so you implanted right to the bank of the River, you're not allowed to spread fertilizer to the river so you're making the most of every inch of the field that way, yeah, and If I was a farmer I'm listening now I think you know, that's a lot of bother so much hand here just to spray fertilizer. Is it Well, suppose we had a farm walk chagas organized a farm walk out last year and uncle's farm out here And we looked at it as multi-spaces looking receding. We looked at different ways of Incorporate so plowing or mental or what we're going to incorporate Bigot tens that there seems a lot on people interest the price of those fertilizers mad it's well back this year But still expensive you can get away with less it so it's not suited to every system But for system that it is sort of to it's works very well. Yeah, there's big savings to me What's the biggest challenges in sheep farming at the minute? I suppose the weather this year we've got so far. That's all farming That's all farming and prices. They're either fairly strong all year That's the slack about this last few weeks But hopefully about a rise again. They seem to start to steady up and maybe go up again There's always a supposed to have challenges and put costs feet didn't come back the way it should have come back this year Should have been back a lot more. It hasn't got back enough and them usual challenges as well Speaking of challenges, I mean, how do you how do you overcome the time challenge if you're doing a lecturing and farming? Good help there. I've younger brother's very keen at Jardin and mom and dad sure Irons whatever irons have to run Everybody's roped in There's no lambing season Lama season everyone's there and we're looking up a good luck of students there too for lambing season So they might help out with lambing as well There's a lot that's changed in farming in recent years in particular and there's now, you know Are you the move towards, you know protecting the environment biodiversity and means farmers become more aware Hi, and they have to be I suppose. It's that's where we're going to be going in the future There's an eye on us and everyone's watching it to see that and I mean, there's no harm either It's it's getting us to adapt to that and yeah a lot of younger farmers coming on through there Maybe more open to adapting to that as well. So yeah, and and they're sort of when they're starting out on the path That's that's sort of the way it is and they they don't they don't change those those are the practices when they're I suppose Farming in general is kind of become more more and more technical and there's a lot more if you go in there like the green Start here and jaggers and that are Kenny or the degree down there in the ATU there like it's oversubscribed again this year There's yeah working in 71st year students and there's maybe a hundred entered for applied for it like so there's a Definitely there's a want or a desire for that new knowledge in there and that's kind of what they've been showing on them Whether it be the green start Or an honours tree or whatever it may be where they're going a lot more than going for their education now for our culture And that's what they're showing. I think it's gonna be to learn before they and then take them practices that they're learning take them home then and yeah, I'd happen with home. Yeah, and So what would you say to anybody just thinking about taking up sheet farming? I mean, you know You're you're experienced enough now to be able to to speak with authority. So, you know, what would you say to them? I don't know It wouldn't have been enough the bat and I didn't need to be Fond of them before you'd be into a lot of work in them But I had a passion for passion for farmer and maybe a passion for sheep there But anyone that there's a to return them definitely things don't right. There's a turn on them yet. Yeah well listen congratulations again FBD young farmer of the year and You know seeing this a lot of the previous winners have been dairy farmers most come as like a double shock I had was wasn't expecting it on. I was kind of happy to go into the last six I was very happy that kind of the first entry and then to get the overall it wasn't expect I thought a big one down the dairy route again there Can they've a lot more information available to them their record and milky area yield and they've a lot of information EBA all the breedings available to the source Remember that step ahead and the rest is trying to catch up with them But it's nice to see that I've been recognized that it's not just area that the rest of under zero the rest of sectors have been recognized as well Absolutely, absolutely. Okay, wait, congratulations again. Thank you. Cheers