Special offer on soil testing at Ploughing

Glanbia customers attending the National Ploughing Championships can sign up for an unbeatable soil testing service available for just €15* per sample.

As well as analysis for the major nutrients in an accredited Irish laboratory, this all-in price includes a technician coming to the farm and taking the soil sample for the farmer. Payment is charged to the customer’s Glanbia account.

Denis Herlihy, Commercial Manager of Glanbia Agribusiness, said that soil testing is the “essential first step” in ensuring that maximum yields of grass and other crops are achieved.

“If required, our highly trained Business Managers are available to help farmers interpret the soil test results for maximum benefit,” he said.

John Fitzgerald, head of Farm Development with Glanbia Ingredients Ireland, said that in order to maximise milk production from grass, the first step is regular soil testing and ensuring that all the key nutrients are optimised.

“We know from Teagasc research that only 11% of soil samples from dairy farms are of optimum status for the key nutrients,” he said. “There is a tremendous return on investment in soil testing”.

“One of the main messages from Teagasc is that insufficient lime is being applied by dairy farmers,” he said. “Unless the soil pH is right, you don’t get the return for the P & K that you apply,” he added.

Where soil pH is too low, applying lime can free up nutrients that are already in the soil, reducing the need for additional fertilizer.

In 1980, 1.3m tonnes of lime was spread in Ireland. However, in 2014, only 750,000t of lime was spread.

The special price of €15 per sample is exclusively available to Glanbia customers who sign up for the soil testing service at the 2016 National Ploughing Championships and will end on the 30th September 2016. Minimum order is five samples per farm.