In October 2017, SuperValu and Centra announced Monaghan-based farmer Pat McGuirk as the recipient of their inaugural Poultry Grower of the Year Award. The award recognises excellence in food safety and quality standards among SuperValu and Centra poultry producers.
A supplier of chicken to SuperValu and Centra for almost 20 years, Pat McGuirk was selected for his outstanding commitment to food safety and quality at farm level.
The SuperValu and Centra Poultry Grower of the Year Award was established to recognise excellence in food safety standards, specifically looking at actions taken by farmers to improve biosecurity and minimise levels of Campylobacter in poultry meat – the most common cause of bacterial food poisoning in Ireland, and throughout the EU.
The award builds on the work of the FSAI and Department of Agriculture’s Campylobacter Stakeholders Group – a proactive collaboration to address the challenge of Campylobacter across the Irish poultry meat sector.
A Manor Farm supplier, Pat was selected after a series of inspections and tests of flocks on his Newbliss, Co Monaghan based farm throughout 2017, showed consistent improvements in Campylobacter levels and biosecurity standards. Indeed, they are now incentivised by 10c for 1,000 birds if they ensure Campylobacter is kept out of the flock.
Commenting on the award, Ray Bowe, Head of Food Safety & Quality, SuperValu and Centra said, “As SuperValu and Centra continue to push the boundaries in fresh food leadership, ensuring the highest food safety standards throughout the supply chain is core to this agenda.
“We are pleased to introduce this accolade to recognise industry-leading standards in poultry farming and ensure that our customers are always guaranteed the best in fresh poultry.”
“The award highlights the commitment to food safety and quality shared by long-standing SuperValu and Centra poultry producers such as Pat McGuirk. I would like to congratulate Pat for his efforts, particularly his success in tackling Campylobacter and in the areas of biosecurity and terminal hygiene plans, all of which have been validated through award adjudicators, Manor Farm.
“His commitment to improving food safety serves as a benchmark for the rest of the producer community.”
So, what are the secrets of Pat McGuirk’s success?
“Hard work!” he answered without hesitation. “It’s down to the quality of our produce and a lot of improvements we have made around the farm in recent years. Hygiene is a big factor in the industry and keeping disease out of the farm is the biggest challenge.
“Getting the hygiene, temperature, feeding, water and ventilation right means more money for the farmer at the end of the day. A good start for a chick is just as important as it is for a calf or any baby.”
Pat was keen to share the praise with the Manor Farm team. He has been supplying the well-known Clonee, Co Meath based company since 2000 and consistent within Manor Farm at all times is a dedication to quality and the production of unique and very tasty chicken products.
“I’m just one spoke in the wheel. It’s a joint effort with Manor Farm and Adrian Gunne (Consultant), Joyce Jordan (Manager/Quality Control) and Mary Duffy (Assistant Manager/Quality Control). I have to thank Adrian for his help as a consultant, as he is helping us achieve our goals.
“Manor Farm Managing Director Vincent Carton has also been amazing as had their Director of Agriculture, Tom Horan. So too had director Justin Carton, and we very much appreciate the dinner they had for us. They have a great passion and commitment to see all of their growers do well and make some extra money.
“My son Conor, who is in secondary school, also helps out. We’re like a big family and SuperValu and Centra has very much become a big part of our family. We owe them a great debt of gratitude because they keep the markets open to us and it’s a prestigious honour which we were delighted to win. It’s like winning a gold medal for your country!”
Others also played a significant part in Pat’s success…
“The back-up service provided by PE Services is second to none. Eamonn Fitzpatrick cleans out all the sheds, Jason Traynor washes them down and Sean McPhillips provides all the quality dry wood shavings.
“We also receive great service from Ciaran Cunningham and PJ Reilly of Monaghan Veterinary Laboratory. If you are quick, they are quicker to find the problem and they look after all our post-mortems.”
Pat continued: “Eamonn and Ciaran of E&C Fitzgerald built the two poultry units and the quality of their work is first class. Darren McEneaney looks after the poultry house sanitation, floor burning and thermal fogging. Pauric Cassidy spreads the shavings and provides a super service.”
It won’t come as a surprise to learn that Pat hails from a farming background and his poultry enterprise is located on four and a half acres given to him by his late father Hugh who sadly passed away last October.
“it was a great thing that my father got so see it happened before he died,” Pat stated. “He and my mother gave us the land in the first play and they saw us carry it through to winning the award. We also graze cattle but nowhere near the same scale as the chicken end of things.”
Pat rears Cobb and Ross birds. Chicks come to him at a day old from Annyalla Chicks, which is part of Manor Farm. They go into the houses which have been preheated to 34 0C or 34.5 OC and bedded with extra thick shavings with feed on the floor.
Describing the current outlook for the Irish poultry industry as “unbelievably good”, Pat, with the continued backing of Manor Farm, SuperValu and Centra, has ambitious plans in the pipeline to expand his award-winning operation in the months ahead in order to maintain the high standards that he has set himself.
Pat McGuirk
Drumskelt
Newbliss
Co Monaghan
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 6 No 2, March/April 2018
