Welcome to the O'Sullivan family farm in County Cork Ireland. The Lisduff farm was purchased in 1943. In 1954 when the late John J. O'Sullivan took over the management he introduced pedigree Friesians as the basis for an efficient dairy-farming business.
AI was used extensively from the worlds best bulls. A small number of animals were imported from Britain, Canada and France plus embryos from the USA to start very successful cow families. The family has built up a valuable business selling breeding stock all over Ireland.
They milk 240 pedigree Holstein-Friesians and the Lisduff Herd is nationally known with a strong emphasis on commercial milk production. LISDUFF MANFRED (LDU) which won the FBD-GENE IRELAND award for the top bull in the 2009 Gene-Ireland programme was bred on the Lisduff Farm.
John has been active over the years in the Irish Holstein Friesian Association (IHFA) and is a recent past Chairman. He is the current Chairman of ICBF and is the President of the Cork Holstein Friesian Breeders Club. He is also a committee member of Dairygold Co-Op.
The aim today is the same as it was in 1954: to breed efficient cows that are a pleasure to milk and manage. That interest in breeding Black and Whites has made them many friends around the world for which they are very grateful.
Another example of their success in breeding is Lisduff Manfred ET this years No.1 new Irish Proven Bull, with an impressive EBI of 205! This is the highest EBI any Irish bull has attained and the first to have an EBI of over 200.
Today the business is run by John, his wife Teresa, sons John, Victor, Donal, Robert and Colm. They are ably assisted by farm manager David McGrath.
The farm enterprises extend to 440 acres (130 rented), a herd of recipients for ET (embryo transfer) work and the top quality grass silage made is complemented with home grown forage maize and wholecrop wheat.
Investment in Hi Tech Parlour
However the old parlour was no longer fit for purpose so with the aid of local DeLaval Dealer, Brian and Tom Harte and Tim Hussey, DeLaval Territory Manager they investigated the various options available. Because of the good local service and excellent track record the choice of brand was an easy decision.
A new 32 unit Midiline DeLaval parlour was commissioned in May 2011 to replace the old plant which had eight double units and recording jars. The new parlour has parallel stalling with safe, easy access to the udder between the cow’s back legs. It includes a sequencing gate to help ensure cows enter the parlour orderly.
The new plant is serviced by Pat Barry from DeLaval Dealer Tom Harte. According to John “the new parlour is brilliant- much easier for the operators and we are saving three hours a day on milking.” He added that “the sequencing gate* allows 32 cows to go direct to their stalls. We have tremendous cow control and excellent udder position for milking.”
One of Johns objectives in selecting the equipment for the new parlour was to achieve significant savings in the electricity bill and to minimise service costs. In this regard the DeLaval heat exchange unit installed is one of several features which will significantly reduce energy and other costs.
Using the auto cow ID the DeLaval Alpro computer system feeds the cows to yield so feed conversion is excellent and herd yields are optimised. John says “we are feeding less meal per cow as we can now allocate feed accurately depending on whether cows are autumn or spring calving.”
Individual cow rations are easier to set using accurate information from the milk meters linked in with the DeLaval Alpro system. With accurate records they are aware of individual yield so this enhances the selection of cows for breeding and herd management.
Eco Friendly Systems
The DeLaval Hygenius C200 auto plant washer uses 30% less water and detergents to clean the parlour and equipment. As John says “just push a button and walk away –when you come back after a tea break the plant is spotless.” The DeLaval Hygenius system also has automatic dosing while the detergents and descaler used are pre-programmed.
They have installed a 18,000 litres DeLaval DXCEM bulk tank which can hold up to three days milkings. This tank cools the milk quickly using four dimple plate evaporators. Two agitator shafts handle the milk delicately and the tank can be washed in 20 minutes using the eco friendly Hygenius automated tank cleaning system.
The variable speed vacuum pump used in the parlour uses 40% less energy and is much quieter than conventional pumps.
