asked the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries if, in view of the serious drop in pig meat prices, he will state the emergency action he proposes to take to prevent the complete failure of the pig industry.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Pig Industry.
1.
Pig prices are now determined by market conditions since our system of guaranteed minimum prices and subsidies on exports of pigmeat had to be discontinued on our accession to the EEC on 1st February last. The recent fall in prices was brought about by over-supplies on our main export market, that is to say, Britain. Heavy arrivals of bacon to that market in June, mainly from Denmark and Poland brought bacon prices down sharply but it is not expected that prices in Britain will fall below their present level.
Is the Minister aware of the seriousness of this situation and the uncertainty this massive drop of £5.50 per cwt is causing to pig producers?
I am quite well aware of the seriousness of the situation but there is no action open to me which I can take to relieve the present position.
Would the Minister consider asking the Pig Marketing Board to provide a fund which would offset a drop if it occurred in future?
That would be a very desirable thing. In fact I have already spoken to them about this possibility. The profits from pigs were very high but unfortunately only for a short time and it did not enable them to accumulate a fund.
Is the Minister aware that some of the pig producers in my area have suffered a considerable loss over the last few weeks?
I appreciate that, but they must have had considerable profits over the past months.
I have some figures which are alarming.
The Deputy cannot make a statement.
I should like to ask the Minister if he is aware that 1,400 pigs were sold at a loss of £5, a total loss of £7,000 to a co-op, and that pigmeal has gone up in price from the 1st July by £2 per ton? The Minister will say that he can do nothing about it but I should like to ask him to investigate the possibility of establishing a fund. Undoubtedly profit was made in the previous few months but the situation at the moment is very serious for pig fattening units. I am a member of one of them and a loss of £7,000 in one month is a lot of money.
Does the Minister not agree that taking these circumstances which are being discussed now into consideration, as well as the inevitable rise in pig feeding costs consequent on the American decision about soya bean meal, that the whole future of the pig feeding industry is in jeopardy?
No, I disagree with the Deputy that the whole future is in jeopardy. The prospects for the pig industry are quite bright according to all the information at my disposal.
How does the Minister reach that conclusion in view of the fact that the market prices for the finished product are dropping very seriously and at the same time the price of feeding stuffs is rising just as quickly?
Because there is a world shortage of meat of all descriptions, number one and, number two, the harvest prospects are exceedingly good.
I should like to ask the Minister——
I am calling the next question. I should like to remind Deputies that this is but the first question on an Order Paper containing more than 250 and the Chair is most anxious to make progress. I have allowed a good number of supplementaries on this matter but if every Deputy intervenes we will get nowhere.
Will the Minister consider taking up with the Ministers of Agriculture of the EEC the question of controlling severely the import of pig meat from countries outside the EEC group?
The position in relation to this is that the countries in question are paying the full import levy. Poland, for example, is one of the outside countries and they are paying the full import levy. There is not much I can do to change that.