It was a slow time on the buildings front this time last year. I could feel it trying to source content for the Farm Buildings pages, but more critically, manufacturers and builders could feel it as well.

A mix of poor weather conditions and additional feed having to go in left the kitty tight and it wasn’t until prices of beef, lamb and milk took a decent lift (along with farmer mood) around the time of the National Ploughing Championships that we saw things turn around.

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a bit of a tongue-in-cheek story on whether it was a wise time to reinvest in suckler and beef enterprises.

It was tongue-in-cheek because, really and truly, there’s never a bad time to invest back in to your business, provided you can financially afford it, be it through cash flow or a loan that you are capable of paying back without serious financial strain.

Over the last 15 years or so, there has never really been a time where it was cheaper to complete on-farm construction than it had been the year before.

Even now, with the price rise in concrete, we are seeing any price reduction in steel costs being eroded away by the increase of concrete price.

One of the farmers who features in our focus this week had priced concrete back in 2021 to complete the job, with €81/m³ quoted. That farmer ended up paying €140/m³ at the start of this year.

Saying all this, there are some things that you can’t put a price on. The reduced working hours that can be then spent with family (such as the Tynan’s rotary parlour) or improved farmer safety (such as the suckler calving shed).

Sometimes, it’s worth it to bite the bullet and go ahead with the investment, as it’s an investment in your own life and wellbeing, as well as your family’s.