The Naughton family in County Roscommon provide a comprehensive range of agri services: father Eddie oversees Eddie Naughton Agri Supplies while his sons Enda and Michael manage Eddie Naughton Farm Machinery and the mixed family farm in Fuerty respectively. We paid them a visit to find out more about these busy operations, which complement each other perfectly.
Eddie Naughton has worked in agriculture all his life, and it’s busier he seems to be getting! There’s the family farm to take care of as well as the popular agri supplies and farm machinery outlets – just as well he has the support of sons Enda and Michael to keep everything ticking over smoothly!
Michael runs the mixed farm in Fuerty, which is a half parish of Athleague close to Roscommon town. It’s a tillage and livestock enterprise and he also provides a keen contracting service. Enda looks after Eddie Naughton Farm Machinery, which was established in 1998 adjacent to the original family business – Eddie Naughton Agri Supplies – on the Athlone Road.
Specialising in animal feeds, chemicals, fertilisers and related products, Eddie Naughton Agri Supplies has been going strong since 1985, trading from rented premises in Roscommon town for four years before relocating to the existing site in ‘89. The genesis of Eddie Naughton Farm Machinery as a stand-alone entity occurred some nine years later, the eponymous proprietor having sold fertiliser spreaders, transfer boxes, small mowers etc. since the early 1990s.
As an agent for Lely, Eddie Naughton Farm Machinery stocks the complete range of grassland machinery, from superb balers, wrappers and mowers to market-leading rakes, tedders, loader wagons, forage harvesters, etc. As farmers themselves, the Naughtons understand the requirements of their customers implicitly.
Kuhn (imported through Cork Farm Machinery) and NC Engineering equipment is also stocked, alongside a range of smaller machinery. As well as sales of new and second-hand machinery, a complete parts and back-up service is also provided around the clock. The Lely agency covers County Roscommon, while Kuhn machinery is sold as far away as Sligo.
“Most of the sales take place between April and August but we are busy all year around through the workshop and parts for tractors and machinery,” notes Enda Naughton. “There’s constant demand for parts because there are a lot of contractors here doing something all year around, be it silage or slurry or hedge-cutting.”
Three are employed full time in the farm machinery business, including an experienced mechanic with a great knowledge of servicing and repairing tractors. Naughtons are renowned for the high level of aftersales care afforded to each and every customer. This is something Enda prides himself on:
“If a farmer or a contractor buys new machinery – or anything else – from us, he can ring us at 11pm on a Saturday night or at 5am on a Monday morning and we will do whatever it takes to get him going or keep him going. From fixing a pipe to giving him a second-hand baler, we will make sure that he doesn’t lose out.
“It’s all about looking after your customers and I can honestly say that I spend as much time in here after 6pm as I do before it. Even if they have bought a competitor’s machine, we will still take the call and go out there and get them going. The mobile phone is never switched off and anybody who has had any dealings with us will testify to that.
“We won’t leave any man stuck and the logic behind it is that if you look after all customers then, somewhere down the line, when a new mower or baler has to be bought, then they will remember you and hopefully be prepared to do business. The Lely brand of grassland equipment is excellent and we are really pleased to be able to offer those machines to customers and to back them up with a strong aftersales service.”
Meanwhile, Eddie Naughton Agri Supplies caters for all the needs a farmer might have, stocking a full range of animal feeds, chemicals, sprays, fertilisers, cement, tools, hardware etc. “AW Ennis in Ballyconnell, County Cavan are our main feeds suppliers and we also sell some feeds from Quinns of Baltinglass,” Eddie notes. “In fertilisers, Yara is the biggest seller and Nitrofert from Wexford is another one we stock, we also have netting from UAT. We also stock DHM Agrochemicals but that has slowed down a lot because there are really only a handful of us growing grain now in this region.”
On their home farm, the Naughtons grow some 100 acres of winter barley – a self-sufficient enterprise which was boosted in 2014 by the acquisition of a brand-new combine harvester. To facilitate the smooth and efficient operation of their own farm, as well as the associated contracting service, they operate and maintain a superb fleet of tractors and machinery.
Eddie had been active in farming all his life. He was born and reared on the family farm, which was run by his father Patrick, who also did a bit of contracting and was one of the first men in Roscommon to get a reaper and binder, when three were allocated to each county in 1948.
“I don’t believe in having all my eggs in one basket,” says Eddie. “About 80% of our land has been in tillage since the 1970s and we also do some livestock – sheep and beef. We went up to 400 acres at one stage but cut back as rented land isn’t really viable anymore.
“Bulk spreading of fertiliser accounts for a large proportion of our contracting. We spread around 1,000 tonnes per year, over a three-month period. Running our own farm is certainly a major help with the machinery and agri supplies businesses as you are up to date with what’s happening on the ground and you have that vital experience of knowing what’s happening at home on the farm.
“The sheep tie in grand with the tillage because we can sow catch crops, which can be used for fattening in mid-winter. Mostly, we grow winter barley, spring barley and then either winter or spring oats. I did wheat but that’s not viable in the West of Ireland and we had 30-50 acres of beet here, too, for over 20 years during the beet times.”
With a lot of help from his family, Eddie is keeping all facets of the business motoring along nicely. He is looking at the next generation of the family:
“My daughter Maria is a physiotherapist based in England and I am delighted to say I became a grandfather last year.
“My two sons are the mainstays in the business now,” he concludes. “I’m in my early 60s so I’ve taken a step back and concentrate on running the agri supplies. Bulk feed has taken over in the last five years – it’s now 80:20 in favour of bulk over bags.
“Enda manages the farm machinery business and my eldest son, Michael, who is 33, does all the sowing, ploughing, tilling and spraying and also looks after the animals – we fatten about 100 heifers over the winter and always try to buy local. There’s plenty to keep us all going.”
And one gets the distinct impression that Eddie, Enda and Michael wouldn’t have it any other way!
Eddie Naughton Farm Machinery / Eddie Naughton Agri Supplies,
Athlone Road,
Roscommon,
County Roscommon.
Tel: 090 6627645
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 4 No 8, October 2016
