Richard Moeran had goose for Christmas dinner last year. Nothing remarkable about that, you might say, until you hear he's a turkey producer.
But happily for his customers, he was not won over by the goose and has no plans to abandon his organic turkey enterprise. “I have to say I wasn’t terribly enamoured with the goose. It was very greasy. We’re definitely having turkey this year.”
About 200 white turkeys are happily gobbling and clucking their way around his farm in Mountnugent, Co Cavan, oblivious to the fate that soon awaits them. Some of them perch comically on the branches of trees, a throwback to their origins in the wild.
The turkey enterprise is a sideline for this farmer, whose day job is producing organic beef and cereals. Turkey producers often vow "never again" after they get rid of the last turkey on Christmas Eve but by the following summer they've forgotten the agony and are ready to embrace the baby turkeys, known as poults, all over again.
'Rolls Royce of turkeys'
“Every year has its own challenges,” he says. “The main challenge for any turkey producer is the cost of feed and inputs.
I would estimate that feed prices have increased by close to 40 per cent in the last five years. That is quite staggering and we’ve kept our prices very much the same because people will not pay beyond a certain point for anything. But our margin is getting tighter and tighter.”
Despite his dalliance with goose, Richard says the tradition of turkey is still very strong in Ireland. “It’s the only dish people think about at Christmas. Although it’s not such a special dish now as it was in years gone by. Back then you would be looking forward to turkey because you hadn’t tasted it in a year.”
Bord Bia’s research shows turkey and ham is still the number one choice with 84 per cent of Irish people eating it on Christmas day. Richard’s turkeys cost from €45 to €65, depending on size, and he says they are the “Rolls Royce” of turkeys because they are organically reared. “It’s a lot of money for one bird but it is the one meal of the year that people do tend to splash out on. They want everything right.”
Under organic farming regulations, organic turkeys must spend two-thirds of their life outdoors. But it costs more to rear these turkeys as they burn up more energy keeping warm and running around outside. Turkeys reared indoors are cosseted in the perfect heat and light conditions needed to encourage growth.
“Some people just say ‘give me a turkey, I don’t want to know all that’, but it’s important that people understand the difference and the reason why it’s more expensive,” he says. “It takes more time and effort.”
Happily for Richard, this year's weather was perfect for turkey growing. "This year has been exceptional. The birds have grown phenomenally well. They are all very, very healthy with clean white plumage. Last year, with the rain and the damp conditions the birds looked miserable. They didn't like to go out because they were constantly getting wet and they didn't thrive as well."
Buy local
He kept bronze turkeys in the past, which cost from €70 to €75 for a 15lb bird but found that people did not want to spend extra money during the economic downturn. “It’s hard enough to sell birds as it is, so you’ve got to offer the best value as you possibly can,” he says.
Irish turkey production has fallen in recent years. In the early 2000s, we processed about 1.2 million turkeys during the Christmas period but last year just 750,000 were processed. Imports of turkeys far exceed our exports. This year, up to the end of October, we exported 137,521 turkeys while importing 817,279. There are just 149 registered turkey producers in the State.
Bord Bia estimates Irish consumers will eat about 800,000 turkeys this Christmas, a fifth of which will be imported. Richard Moeran says it is difficult to compete with cheaper Italian imports. Some butchers are suspected of labelling cheaper imports as Irish, and he says people should always check if the giblets are present.
For food safety reasons, turkey importers cannot include giblets so he says if there are no giblets “it’s probably an imported bird”.
The Irish Farmers Association is encouraging people to buy local when shopping this Christmas, whether it is for their turkey, ham or vegetables. "They should question their supplier and determine that what they buy has been grown or reared locally," a spokesman said.
Frantic few weeks
So while everyone else is shopping, Richard and other turkey producers are steeling themselves for a frantic few weeks. “It is a great little earner before Christmas,” he says. “But a lot of hassle, yes, especially in the last few days. You are trying to make sure that everyone gets exactly what they want, when they want it. That’s
a bit of a challenge sometimes.”
