Amid ongoing discussions on proposed changes to the supply of veterinary medicines, the livestock and environmental services executive of the Irish Co-operative Organisation Society (ICOS), Ray Doyle has stressed that “farmers need the maximum possible choice”.
Doyle was speaking to Agriland after an industry meeting between ICOS, the Independent Licensed Merchants Association (ILMA) and Acorn Independent Merchants which took place in Tullamore, Co. Offaly yesterday (Tuesday, July 30).
“Yesterday’s meeting was just about refining our message that we’re going to communicate today, that farmers need the maximum possible choice and the maximum possible competition in veterinary medicinal products,” Doyle said.
ICOS, farm organisations and representatives of Veterinary Ireland will meet with officials from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) this afternoon (Wednesday, July 31), to discuss the matter.
If the current Statutory Instrument (SI) goes through, he said veterinary prescriptions must be written for most antiparasitic products and warned that “we will not be economically in a position to provide farmers without these products”.
While the original draft set out that merchants and co-ops have a right to prescriptions to sell antiparasitics, latest changes would not permit them to generate prescriptions to sell vaccines, Doyle said.
“We will be left with a high-cost model of trying to deliver to farmers and some co-ops and merchants will inevitably not be in a financial position to do so and they will exit the market no more than Veterinary Ireland has indicated that the sky will fall in on them.
“What we’re trying to do today is to have a situation where everybody can economically stay in the business that they’re in today, nobody is setting out to undermine anybody else that is currently in the market,” Doyle said.
“The core message here is that we want to try and maintain everybody that’s currently retailing products to farmers that they can remain viable and [stay] in business after the SI is written,” Doyle told Agriland.
Veterinary medicines
The Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertilisers Regulation Bill 2023 was signed into law last year. The act provided Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue with the powers to create regulations under the act.
Meanwhile, the DAFM confirmed that the minister continues to engage with stakeholders on the veterinary medicinal products regulations, with the “aim of being in a position to sign the regulations shortly”.
Minister McConalogue recently met with Veterinary Ireland to discuss their members’ concerns regarding the proposed changes to the supply of veterinary medicines. Veterinary Ireland described the meeting as “constructive”.
Veterinary Ireland expressed its concerns over the potential consequences of the act for vets, including job losses, animal health, public health and the agricultural industry. The minister said he would “consider” the concerns raised.