Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 13 July 2016
241. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the measures he is taking to ensure beef farmers receive a fair price for their produce following recent price dips; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21604/16]
View answerMy role as Minister in relation to the beef sector is to create a policy and support environment that allows it to flourish in line with standard market principles and delivers the best possible returns for all participants in the sector. I am guided in this context by the long-term sectorial development strategies as set out in Food Wise 2025 and I am confident that these initiatives, in conjunction with the Rural Development Programme, will lead to continued growth in terms of profitability and efficiency of the sector as whole. The primary determinant of prices in any market is the relationship between supply and demand. As with any Minister for Agriculture in the EU, I can have no role in beef prices in Ireland.
It is a clear objective of mine to ensure that this sector continues to receive the necessary support to address the challenge of profitability within the sector. In addition to the Basic Payment Scheme, a range of measures introduced under the Rural Development Programme helps to improve efficiency and profitability on farm and to support environmentally sustainable production. This includes programmes such as TAMS, GLAS, Knowledge Transfer Groups and of course the Beef Data and Genomics Programme.
The Beef Data and Genomics Programme, or BDGP, has an allocation of €300 million and aims to address the widely acknowledged weaknesses in the maternal genetics of the suckler herd in Ireland, reduce the Greenhouse Gas intensity of Irish beef production and most importantly to make a positive contribution to the future viability of suckler farmers.
Furthermore, in May I launched the Knowledge Transfer Group Scheme which has been allocated €100 million from the Rural Development Fund for the roll-out of Knowledge Transfer Groups across a range of enterprises, including beef and suckler farmers. Farmers participating in such groups will receive a payment of €750 per annum.
As an exporting country, accessing new markets is crucial to the long-term sustainability of our beef sector. In 2015 Ireland exported an estimated €2.2 billion, or approximately 500,000 tonnes of beef, to almost 80 countries around the globe and my role as Minister is to facilitate market access and to enable Irish exporters to take advantage of the opportunities that arise. I was delighted to announce last week the decision of the US authorities to extend their approval for Irish beef to include manufacturing beef/beef intended for grinding (BIFG). This marks the culmination of over a year of intensive work between my Department and its US counterparts on a range of technical matters to extend access to manufacturing beef/ BIFG. We are currently in the process of trying to secure beef access to other third countries including, inter alia, China, South Korea, Israel, Ukraine and Vietnam. It is my intention to continue to focus on developing as many third country markets as possible in order to provide exporters as many commercial opportunities as possible in a competitive global marketplace.
