Passion is at the heart of what any food producer does, but when you’re the heart and soul of your small business, it can be difficult to take time for yourself. What happens, then, when you face a physical health challenge? This was precisely farmer and master cheesemaker, Gabriel Faherty’s, predicament when he was told in 2023 that he would need open heart surgery.
Passion is at the heart of what any food producer does, but when you’re the heart and soul of your small business, it can be difficult to take time for yourself.
What happens, then, when you face a physical health challenge? This was precisely farmer and master cheesemaker, Gabriel Faherty’s, predicament when he was told in 2023 that he would need open heart surgery.
Like most Inis Mór natives on the Aran Islands, Gabriel grew up dividing his time between the land and sea, farming the island’s iconic rock wall-lined fields with his grandfather and working on fishing boats. In his formative years, Gabriel spent weeks and months at a time at sea as a fisherman.
When he married his wife, Orla – another Inis Mór native – and the couple started their family, Gabriel decided to say goodbye to fishing and develop a business which would keep him closer to home.
In addition to his few cattle, Gabriel wanted to expand his agricultural output and create a food product unique to the Aran Islands. In 2014, after much research, Gabriel decided to start farming Nubian and Saanen goats – breeds ideal for grazing Inis Mór’s rocky vegetation – with the goal of making goat’s cheese.
Numerous awards
Today, the 90ac farm produces soft cheeses including a feta-style cheese and an aged cheese from their milking herd of 50.
Aran Island Goat’s Cheese has won numerous awards over the years and Gabriel was recognised for his notable contribution to Irish food at the Irish Food Writers Guild Awards in 2023.
In addition to cheesemaking, Gabriel operates Aran Food Tours which takes visitors on half or full-day jaunts around the island to experience food offerings and historic sites. He is well-versed in the lore and history of the island and enjoys engaging with visitors about Inis Mór’s unique culture and foodways.
“Our [2025] tours started on 30 April,” he says. “After that, I only have three days in May where there are no bookings. Most private tours are for American visitors, but we also see a lot of French and Italian folk.”
This year, Gabriel and Orla are also opening a small boutique on their farm. Here, they plan to sell their cheeses alongside Irish-made chocolates, local preserves and chutneys and brown bread made from Orla’s family recipe.
The business is a true family affair, with Gabriel and Orla running the show and their four children Alan (18), Eoin (16), Donnacha (14) and Fia (12) all helping out.
Speaking with Gabriel and Orla, it is immediately apparent how much their family and the wider Inis Mór community means to them – especially now that they have faced and overcome Gabriel’s health challenges. If Orla hadn’t encouraged her husband to go to Galway for a health check back in 2023, Gabriel might have never gone.
One of the goats. \ Philip Doyle
Full health check
“Orla said, ‘You promised you would go for a full health check – you’re 52 years old and still haven’t gone in,’ I felt like we were too busy, but I told her if we could find a quieter time, I’d go,” he says. “We went in early March. The doctor put a stethoscope to my chest and straight away said, ‘I can hear a murmur’.”
Despite having no symptoms and no family history (of which he was aware) of heart problems, Gabriel was told that further tests were urgently needed to rule out a serious issue.
“Afterwards, I found out my great-grandmother had died of a leaky valve at age 54, so I suppose it does run in the family,” he says.
An echocardiogram was scheduled soon after his initial doctor’s visit and six weeks later, Gabriel and Orla travelled back to Galway to receive the results.
“The doctor sat me down and said, ‘Do you want the good news or the bad news?’” Gabriel recounts. “I said, ‘Give me the good news’ and he said, ‘The good news is we can fix you, but you have heart surgery coming up.’”
The timing couldn’t have been worse. Gabriel was facing into his busiest time of year, with the goats at peak production and cheesemaking in full swing. Surgery in the spring or summer meant he wouldn’t be able to run his Aran Food Tours as planned.
The doctor offered a potential solution: he would conduct a few more tests, including a stress test, and find out if there were any blockages which would require immediate surgery. Amazingly, Gabriel passed all of these other tests without issue and it was agreed surgery could wait until after Christmas.
“The doctor said to me, ‘You’re a lot fitter than you look’,” Gabriel recalls, laughing. “That was kind of a back-handed compliment.”
Being from an island and a fishing background, you’re brought up knowing that you are always going to need a back-up for your back-up
After winding down the 2023 season, Gabriel had surgery in February 2024 and had a pacemaker fitted. He wasn’t allowed to drive and couldn’t lift anything heavier than a kettle for the first six weeks. Then, after 12 weeks, he was allowed to drive his tour bus again.
Rest and relaxation doesn’t come easily to a farmer, but Gabriel had support from friends, neighbours and his son, Eoin, during his recovery period.
“Eoin was a big help,” Gabriel says.
“He took over watching the goats and feeding them. In fact, he still does those jobs for me. He also does the milking when I can’t. He just loves farming.”
Today, Gabriel, Orla and their children are excited for what the future holds. Tour bookings are filling up and they have invested in a large, colourful mural to be painted onto the side of their farm shed.
Inis Mór is a special place, and it’s safe to say that islanders are made of tough stuff.
“Being from an island and a fishing background, you’re brought up knowing that you are always going to need a back-up for your back-up,” Gabriel says. “It’s the same when you’re running a small business. In the past, if you didn’t get what you needed when the ferry came in, that was it. My grandfather used to say: ‘Save it for seven years. If you don’t need it after seven years, then you can throw it out.’
“For farming needs especially,” he continues, “you have to plan quite far ahead. On the mainland, a farmer can make a call and get what they need that day. You’re always planning a month ahead. Then, when you get busy, you have to have everything set up because you can’t physically leave the island.”
Gabriel credits his community for helping him when he was in need. Now, he wants other small business owners to know how important it is to focus on their health and get those annual check-ups. As the old adage goes, your health is your wealth.
“I was lucky,” Gabriel tells Irish Country Living. “We all need to mind ourselves – when I first asked if we could postpone the surgery, the doctor said, ‘You might make [the money], but you won’t spend it.’ A good reminder that if we don’t have our health, we don’t have much.”
Gabriel Faherty on the farm in the Aran Islands. \ Philip Doyle
See aranislandgoatscheeseandfoodtours.com
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