Dairy cow cap now on the agenda?
CONNACHT IFA Regional Chair, Pat Murphy, has expressed ‘serious concerns and worries’ about the references last week at the IFA AGM by Agriculture Minister, Charlie McConalogue, in relation to achieving a stable dairy herd over the coming years.
Pat Murphy told the Farming Tribune that the remarks from the Minister had come as ‘a bolt from the blue’ in the context of limiting dairy herd expansion across the country.
“There are many farmers out there who are trying to make a living from farming and who are looking at making modest enough increases in their herds and in their equipment over the coming years.
“As well as that, there are also some farmers who are considering making the switch to dairying – again on the basis that it represents a chance for them to make a living from the land – and they have to be given their chance too,” said Pat Murphy.
He also pointed out that over the past decade or so, there were many dairy farmers who ‘had invested heavily and borrowed heavily’ with a view to improving their long-term viability prospects as farmers, and this had to be factored into any future policy decisions.
“To be honest what Charlie McConalogue said at the IFA AGM last week in terms of the dairy herd was not expected. In fact, it came as quite a shock to most of us involved in the dairy sector, and it will be an issue that we will pursuing over the coming weeks,” said Pat Murphy.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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