FFN Festival Speakers | 2026
About Jane
Organic Beef Farmer • Grassland Scientist • FFN Ambassador
Dr Jane Shackleton runs a 250-acre suckler-to-beef farm in County Cavan which has been certified organic for almost 30 years. The farm combines a diverse mix of grasslands, woodlands, and semi-natural habitats. Jane runs a herd of mainly Aberdeen Angus suckler cows with a focus on animal performance within a low-input beef system.
Low-Input Systems & Habitat Conservation
Alongside permanent pastures and sown red clover swards, the farm includes rare lowland hay meadows, bog, wetlands, woodland, hedgerows, and traditional stone walls. Additional habitats created include 50 acres of mixed conifer and broadleaf woodland, previously managed as agroforestry, new hedgerows, an ornamental garden, traditional orchards, and beehives.
The farm is part of the Great Irish Grasslands Trail, with ongoing wildlife monitoring and bird and insect records submitted to the National Biodiversity Data Centre.
Research, Farm Walks & Grassland Science
It regularly hosts farm walks, and a publicly accessible nature walk passes through the farm. Jane recently completed a PhD in Grassland Science at University College Dublin, where her research examined the potential of agronomically designed multispecies swards in intensive grazing systems.
She is passionate about managing her farm as a balanced system, valuing productive agriculture alongside biodiversity and habitat conservation.
As a Farming for Nature Ambassador, Jane champions soil health, biological farming, and biodiversity, highlighting the link between good farming and good food.
See Jane at the Festival
Join Jane at the Farming for Nature Festival and hear her perspective on the connection between food, farming and biodiversity.
