asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries the progress made during the period of the Third Programme for Economic and Social Development to date in developing the home turkey trade on an all-year-round basis.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Home Turkey Trade.
70.
Arrangements were made by my Department that supplies of turkey breeding stock from their foundation farm at Athenry, would be adequate to cater for an expanding distribution of poults for rearing and marketing on a year round basis. The number of poults distributed in the September-April period, intended mainly for off-season sale, has increased from 156,000 in 1968-69 to 230,000 in 1971-72.
Has this led to an increase in the marketing of turkeys in the off-season?
I cannot say offhand whether that has been the case. There would be a number of factors involved in this, an important one being the tourist industry and that industry has not been as satisfactory during the last year or so as it might have been.