Pat lives on Shortlestown Farm in County Kilkenny with his new wife Dianne (he got married on the 6th November – congratulations Pat!), his mum and dad - Annie and John, and about 100 cows. Shortlestown Farm has been in the family for five generations, and Pat believes Ireland is one of the only countries where it is common for farms to be passed down the family from generation to generation.

Pat is a huge rugby fan - when he was 26, he played professionally for the Leinster Rugby squad. Whilst he was a rugby player, Pat had the difficult task of juggling rugby life with looking after his farm, so hired a farmhand to help out, and returned to his farm two or three nights a week. Throughout his rugby career Pat got to travel to South Africa, Italy, Wales and France but unfortunately, got injured at the age of 27, and had to retire from playing professionally. Although Pat found it hard to combine being a farmer and a professional rugby player, he found it great fun and is proud to have played professionally. Pat still shows an interest in rugby, because he feels that if the going gets tough on his farm, it is healthy to have a hobby and an interest that allows him to escape. Pat feels his rugby days were great training for farming, and used to joke that rugby training was like earning a PhD in farming, with all the Pulling, Hauling and Dragging! Whilst he was playing rugby Pat always wanted to return to farming and knew that one day he would look after the farm full time.

Like many of the other Kerrygold Farmers, Pat is a member of a discussion group, where local farmers gather together once a month to discuss problems they may be encountering, share tips, and help each other out. As some older farmers are members of the group, they can be a great help as they can share their experiences. Last autumn, the cooperative sponsored members of the discussion group on a trip to Dubai to compare the farming methods used, (which are very different to those used in Ireland) and to learn about the time management skills of farmers working on a huge scale. In Dubai, the farms were in the middle of the desert, and housed around 1,000 cows, which were being milked three times a day, and would eat imported straw from Spain. Pat prefers the methods of farming used in Ireland, and the grass diet of the cows - his farm is full of quality grass, which means his cows produce quality milk. Pat also appreciates the fact that Irish farms are usually passed down from generation to generation, allowing farmers to grow up learning new skills.

Pat’s favourite time of the year is spring; although this is the busiest and toughest time of the year, it is when the calves are being born, so it is also the most rewarding. During the spring time, farming really is 24/7 for Pat – he has a CCTV camera installed so that he can always keep an eye on the cows during the calving season! Pat’s favourite time of day on the farm is around 2 o’clock, as this is the time when everything is more or less under control, and he can have a well earned cup of tea!