The name Heathfield Agri Contracting is synonymous with quality around the Garvagh area and their dedication, commitment and reliability is second to none. Irish Tractor & Agri caught up with proprietor Brian Torrens who highlighted reliability as one of the key strengths of the business.
The Torrens family members are well-known and popular amongst their surrounding community and further afield.
Father Gerald has carried on the proud family tradition of beef farming on their 150 acres, mother Heather runs the award winning Heathfield Farm House B&B while son Brian has successfully operated Heathfield Agri Contracting for the past 20 years.
“Beef farming goes back the generations in our family,” Brian explained, “while I started out working for local contractors before starting out on my own with one tractor. We’ve progressed from humble beginnings and cover a 20 miles radius.
“Practically all of our customers are on our doorstep and we’ve benefitted from great loyalty from them. Some of our customers have been with us from the start, which you could say is testament to the quality of our work, and we’re very grateful to them for their continued support.”
Building and maintaining customer relationships are two important qualities of any successful farm contractor and that’s something that Brian has down to a tee and he always ensures that their work meets or exceed their customers expectations.
His willingness to adapt has seen his workload steadily increase down through the years. At very competitive rates, their wide range of contracting services includes slurry, silage, ploughing and reseeding.
Five Valtra tractors are lined up in the shed alongside a vast array of associated machinery and to keep the bills down, Brian and his team of three full-time employees, as well as part-timers, look after the maintenance work themselves.
A policy of continuous investment in machinery has helped Heathfield Agri Contracting stay ahead of the competition. As a rule, he employs experienced operators and always maintains his machinery to a high standard.
“We operate a slurry umbilical system we bought off James O’Kane of Agquip Ltd, Ballymoney while last month we purchased a 13 tonne Hitachi 135,” Brian revealed.
Customers who call Brian are always guaranteed a friendly reception. The importance of customer care is something he has learned from his mother Heather and her renowned Bed & Breakfast business.
Heathfield Farm House is an elegant Bed & Breakfast & self catering rural accommodation situated on A29 Garvagh to Coleraine road. Heathfield Farm House is near the Giants Causeway, Bushmills Distillery and Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge.
From Heathfield Farm House, the visitor to Ireland may travel with ease into the rugged beauty of Donegal and the Glens of Antrim.
Heathfield Farm House Bed and Breakfast offers en-suite bedrooms and the breakfast is a feast to delight the taste buds, where you can sample home cooked breads. Heathfield Farm is classfied with AA 4 diamonds.
A warm friendly Irish welcome awaits you from the moment you arrive at Heathfield Farm House, with a hot cup of tea or coffee and home made biscuits.
The same can be said for Brian and his contracting business. His aim is to provide a cost-effective and punctual service to remove any stress from their customers’ farming operations. He is pleased to report that, at this point in time, is staff and machinery are busy all year round.
“We’re getting busier and busier every year,” he revealed. “We’re buying different machines and it’s great to be getting more and more work. Good staff is important in our business and we take great pride in our reputation.”
Brian and his team at Heathfield Contracting have the necessary experience to carry out all their contracts in a friendly, co-operative and flexible manner, overcoming any potential obstacles along the way to ensure that the finished works is what meets the requirements of the farmer.
They can be flexible to suit everyones individual needs depending on the task and can tailor contracts depending on what machinery or help is required from them as contractors.
Heathfield Agri Contracting
Agri Contracting Specialists
Drumcroon Rd
Garvagh
Coleraine
BT51 4EB
Mob: 07752759764
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 4 No 9, November/December 2016
