ICMSA meets Heydon on 'critical period' in Irish agriculture
A delegation of national officers from the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA) has met with Minister for Agriculture, Food and Marine Martin Heydon on what it called the "critical period in Irish agriculture".
The president of ICMSA, Denis Drennan, said that the meeting had gone into detail on the issues facing Irish farming and the wider agri-sector, saying after the meeting that "it is difficult to remember a time in Irish agriculture when so much was at stake".
"We simply have to get this right if Irish agriculture – and the rural communities that depended on it - are to have the positive future that their efforts and skill merit and to which they are entitled to aspire," he added.
He listed the recent EU Vision for Agriculture and Food; the nitrates derogation and related issues; TB; and trade issues as the main concerns flagged to the minister.
Drennan said: "The issues facing farmers are vast, but progress is possible."
He called on the minister and the government to immediately set out their plans on how they intend addressing these issues and how farm families can earn an income comparable to other sectors of the economy and "so ensure the next generation of farmers will freely choose the role".
On the Vision for Agriculture and Food, Drennan told the minister that the positive sentiments expressed in it must be turned into real actions through simplification and strengthening the position and margins of farmers in the food supply chain.
He specifically called for an increased Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) budget post-2027, saying that this would be "critical in this regard".
On nitrates, the ICMSA president said the retention of the derogation with "practical and sensible rules" is an "absolute requirement". The ICMSA members told Minister Heydon that the government "simply cannot continue to load more and more regulations on farmers".
"In fact, a full review of existing rules should be carried out and ineffective rules should be removed. Farmers completely accept the need to protect and improve water quality, but that can and should be done in a way that does not obliterate farmers," Drennan said.
On the issue of TB, the ICMSA said that the minister was told of the massive concern among farmers in relation to TB levels and the failure of the department to address it.
"Farm families are suffering badly because of this failure and the department needs to put a comprehensive and evidence-based plan in place immediately while treating affected farm families with the fairness and respect that they deserve."
On trade issues, the ICMSA told the minister that the government cannot accept the Mercosur agreement and "token commitments on sustainability" and short-term compensation cannot be used as excuses to accept the agreement.
On farm schemes and their administration, Drennan said that the delays in the Agri Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) are "just unacceptable and very demoralising and financially challenging for the farmers involved".
Drennan called on the minister to instruct the department to issue the payments immediately.
"On the Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Schemes (TAMS), the reference costs need to be updated immediately, and fast-track approvals for slurry storage should be put in place so that works can commence in April.
The question of the the government's commitment on exempting slurry storage from planning permission was "also touched upon", the ICMSA said.
Drennan thanked Minister Heydon and his officials for the meeting, saying that "he had no doubt but that the importance and gravity of the issues we all face together had been impressed upon the minister".
