asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the steps he proposes to take to secure the future of the Irish cereal producer.
Written Answers. - Cereal Production.
112.
Cereal production is governed by the EC Common Agricultural Policy and I shall continue to do my utmost to ensure that the interests of Irish cereal producers and the economy generally are recognised when decisions on the cereal sector are taken at Community level. Small cereal producers can, of course, get a refund of co-responsibility levy paid under a scheme operated by my Department. The proposed extension of the producer group regulation to Ireland will also provide further opportunities to our cereal producers.
I believe that the best course for Irish cereal producers to follow is to concentrate on the most efficient production of quality cereals for use in the milling and malting industries, both on home and export markets. The emphasis should be on a more market-orientated operation, thus reducing dependence on intervention. Attention must also be paid to input costs to achieve adequate profit margins.
Some underlying economic factors are now much more favourable than they were in the early part of this decade. In particular, our inflation and interest rates are at very low levels and, because of the success of Government policy, are likely to remain low for the foreseeable future.