Located in the Ardmore area of Co Waterford is the Prendergast family who have for many decades now provided an agricultural contracting service to the farmers in the locality.
Established by Pat Prendergast and his brothers James and John, they have been supplying a wide range of services to their loyal customer base for 55 years. James is well known in the completion ploughing having won four all Ireland medal in his class. A lot has changed in farming during that time as technology has thrown machinery into the modern era, while science plays a huge part in not only animal feed, but livestock as well. These days, Pat’s sons Patrick and Declan are heavily involved in the day to day running of the business and Declan spoke to Irish Tractor & Agri about farming in general and the services that they provide.
Prendergast Contracting specialise in ploughing, tilling, spraying, combining, lime and bulk fertiliser spreading, silage harvesting, baling and wrapping, hedge cutting as well as dung and slurry spreading, while they also have a 14-tonne digger for plant work.
Farmers are a loyal bunch and if they feel that they are getting a good value for the service being provided, they generally tend to stay with that business and Declan revealed that they have customers there going back many years.
“The majority of our customers would be with us many, many years. We’d have one lad with us since my father first started up. We would cover an area between Ardmore and Durgavan. Thankfully, the customers seem happy with what we are doing, the simple fact is that if they weren’t they would get someone else in to do the work.”
To carry out all their services efficiently and promptly, the Prendergast’s have a vast fleet of machinery that is kept in perfect condition.
“We would use Deutz tractors most of the time which are bought in Kearney bros agri Fermoy. We have been dealing with them for a good few years and have a good business relationship with them.
“Our harvester is a Claas which was bought of Kelly’s of Borris. The aim is to upgrade the fleet every few years and we recently added one new Deutz tractor to the fleet.
“The machinery is all kept in good condition and we would service everything on a regular basis. The last thing you want are any breakdowns when on a job.”
Time is of the essence in farming and during the hectic period of the summer months, it is all hands to the pump in order to get the work done.
“A lot of the work is very weather dependent, so you have a small window to get the work done. Fortunately, the last few summers have been dry enough, but it is essential to get through the work as quickly as possible. That is why we place a big emphasis on making sure the machinery is in good working order.”
Tillage work is a big part of Prendergast’s operation with beet grown on contract serving farmers in the Waterford area. Since the closure of the sugar beet factories they have built up a considerable reputation for supplying quality beet to a vast amount of dairy and beef farmers. However, Declan admitted that the market is at a low for a grain now and it is becoming major concern for farmers.
“The price of corn and grain has dropped a lot over the last few years. It is a very volatile market and it is nearly at the stage where you think is it worth it or not. Hopefully, it will change though in the near future.”
Declan and the family are kept busy throughout the year through their array of services, but he feels that expansion must be put on hold for the time being.
“I have no plans to expand for the time being at least. You have to take a cautious approach when taking on extra work, but the farmers that I’m working for now, are the ones that “I’ve been dealing with since I first started working with my father. We’ve no plans for any new machinery at the moment; the price of corn is just too bad to be delving into new machinery.”
As mentioned, Declan and his team supply a number of agricultural services and for this time of the year, ploughing, beet harvesting and spreading slurry is their main focus for this time of year but he stressed that the ban in place for slurry spreading over the winter makes no sense at all.
A former Waterford hurler, Declan retired from inter-county action in 2012, having won four Munster SHC medals and a NHL medal during his career.
“I have a young family and the demands of an inter-county hurler were getting more intense, it’s even worse now since I left. I still play hurling and football with my club Ardmore and I thoroughly enjoy it, but the inter-county is certainly a young man’s game.”
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 5 No 3, April/May 2017
