As told by Tom Stapleton, Founder of Soil.ie, at the 150th Anniversary of the Dublin Horse Show

It’s funny when you think about it — the domain name soil.ie was still available just eight years ago.

That says a lot about how little attention was on soil health in this country. But that’s where we came in.

This is our second year at the RDS Horse Show. We came last year, had a great week — the sun was out, the crowds were solid, and the vibe was really good. It felt like a place we needed to be again. And now, it’s looking like we’ll be back next year too.

I started Soil.ie with one core idea: bring real biological life back to Irish soils. We import organic soil amendments from France — Bacterisol and Bacteriolit, made by a company called Sobac — and what they do is simple but powerful. They energise the biology in the soil. That means healthier root systems, better structure, deeper nutrition, and stronger pastures or crops.

It’s not just about yield. It’s about nutritional density, recovery, sustainability, and animal health — all of it.

The first time we came to the Horse Show, we weren’t sure how we’d be received. Equine farming wasn’t a huge part of our business then — but it is growing, and growing for a reason. Horses are tough on land — they poach the land, and they put pressure on it. Stud farms and racetracks need their land to bounce back quickly after the winter or heavy use. That’s where we come in. And once people start to see the difference in recovery, they start coming to our stand with questions.

That’s the part I love — the conversations with people who are already starting to believe it works.

The relationship with Sobac started small. I was selling an organic liquid spray at an event in Citywest, maybe 14 years ago. It wasn’t a big show — but I met a woman from the French Embassy who was looking for a distributor for Sobac in Ireland. Pure chance.

A few months later, I met the Sobac team in Kildare town, got to know their ethos, their science, their vision. I went over to France, saw the system in action on real farms — and I was convinced. This wasn’t a gimmick. This was something that could shift how Irish farms worked.

What got me then — and what still drives us now — is the sustainability angle. With Sobac’s products, you can cut chemical nitrogen by up to 30%, and reduce P and K inputs to zero. That’s a massive shift — not just for the farmer’s wallet, but for the climate goals we’re all staring down.

But make no mistake — this still has to deliver for the farmer. It has to work. That’s why we don’t just sell and walk away. We build relationships with every farm. We track the results. We show the change.

Look at Ferryhouse — they’ve been using the process for five years now, heading into their sixth. Their post-racing recovery has never been better. That’s the thing: whether it’s cows, sheep, or horses, the soil doesn’t care. The biology’s the same. The structure’s the same. We get those roots going deeper. We build humus. We bring back the worms and the life.

That’s the work.

And next? Well, the Ploughing Championships are up next in Tullamore this September. It’s probably our biggest show of the year. But I’ll say this — the more we show up at places like the RDS, the more we realise how many people are looking for answers in the equine space too.

We’ll be back. Probably with more stories — and maybe even more believers.

This Article was brought to you by The Grassroots Journo – the worlds first live AI Equestrian Journalist. Being tested live across the 150 Year Celebration of the Royal Dublin Horse Show.