Skip to main content
Normal View

Fodder Crisis

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 July 2018

Thursday, 12 July 2018

Questions (3)

Jackie Cahill

Question:

3. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the steps he is taking to ensure sufficient supports are put in place to assist farmers who risk another fodder shortage due to the extreme hot weather. [32066/18]

View answer

Oral answers (10 contributions)

We have come out of one of the worst winters we have experienced in a long time and we are now in a drought, the worst since 1976. In a year when we wanted serious grass and crop growth the first crops are being used to supplement animals. The tillage sector has said spring barley will be an absolute disaster, with very low yields and the prospect of very little straw being available. We cannot sleepwalk into the crisis that will come in the winter of 2018 and the spring of 2019. We must put measures in place now to try to ensure that we have enough fodder in place both from an animal welfare point of view and an economic perspective to get through the six month winter that faces us.

Well before the current dry spell and its attendant problems for farmers and fodder, last winter and spring brought their own weather challenges. To learn from the lessons of last winter and to plan for the coming winter I convened a representative group chaired by Teagasc and including stakeholders such as co-ops, banks and farm bodies, among others, to co-ordinate advisory messages to farmers this summer around replenishing stocks that have been used up during the current extraordinarily dry weather. I have asked the group to provide advice and guidance to manage grazing and to ensure fodder is available to all farmers. This group will remain in place until I am satisfied that the issue of securing adequate fodder supplies for next winter has been fully addressed.

The group has met on two occasions and I joined the second meeting of this group by phone link to keep informed of its actions in support of livestock farmers affected by the dry conditions. The group is scheduled to meet again next week. On 26 June I launched a national fodder census, to be compiled by Teagasc, through its client network as well as clients of the other fodder group stakeholders, with another census planned for 1 September. The aim of the census is to monitor and measure the levels of fodder in the country and will inform further actions that may be necessary this autumn.

Detailed agronomic advice is being regularly co-ordinated and communicated to farmers by the bodies represented on the fodder group, including through our own social media account. In addition, a dedicated helpline to provide advice to farmers affected by the ongoing drought has been set up by Teagasc. This is being supplemented by a series of local meetings and clinics where farmers can obtain direct support from Teagasc advisers on the spot. The helpline will operate daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. It is important to emphasise that this helpline service and local clinics are open to all farmers, including non-Teagasc clients. Co-ops and feed compounders represented on the group have increased feed output to meet demand while banking institutions, also represented on the group, have announced a series of initiatives and are working closely with farmer customers on effective financial planning to see them through the current difficult spell.

While I welcome the role of Teagasc and its advice, the reality is that we are facing an unprecedented crisis and some practical measures must be taken in order to optimise grass growth and the availability of fodder for next winter. First, I suggest that the closing date for the spreading of chemical fertiliser be extended by two weeks. Rain will come at some stage and we must exploit the amount of grass that we can grow when the rain comes. Tillage farmers will be in a crisis. They have had a number of years of very low income. Given the late sowing this spring followed by the weather conditions we have experienced, tillage farmers, especially those with spring barley, will be in a very serious financial situation. Something must be done urgently to remedy that.

The other issue the Minister must address as a matter of urgency is the exploitation by meat factories of the situation by dropping prices substantially due to farmers trying to offload stock. Farmers are being exploited to an unbelievable extent. Factory prices have dropped significantly in recent weeks without any reason whatsoever. Confidence in targets for Food Wise 2025 and Food Harvest 2020 are being badly shaken. The way factories are treating farmers at the moment must be examined. We need practical action. Bringing forward payment dates for CAP payments, including for GLAS, would be welcome but we need practical solutions.

I remind Deputies and the Minister that the standing order governing supplementary questions specifies just a minute.

The ultimate solution to the problem is rainfall. Farmers would be well advised to engage with the Teagasc advisory service. In today's Irish Farmers' Journal there is a full page advertisement by Teagasc on the various sectors and the appropriate measures for them.

That headline advice, followed by tailored individual advice through the advisory service - provided by either Teagasc or private consultants who are part of the stakeholder group - is important. I welcome the fact that the financial institutions are indicating an awareness of the issues. They are part of the stakeholder group and are tailoring products to meet demand.

In the context of processors of primary produce, be it in the dairy or meat sectors, we need solidarity across the industry. Any evidence of a lack of that in the face of the current challenges would be disappointing. Many co-ops are meeting to discuss, for example, dairy prices and that should be reflected in the context of the solidarity that is required.

One of the issues I am particularly concerned about is that September is generally the month when water supplies and private wells are most adversely impacted upon as a result of a dry period. We are faced with a situation now where water levels are at an unprecedentedly low level. Groundwater levels are also low. Farmers need to be conscious of that and perhaps take the appropriate measures at this point because there is nothing more distressing on a farm, particularly a dairy farm, than a lack of water. Generally speaking, there is solidarity among people.

We will take a final supplementary from Deputy Cahill. There are Members who will not get the opportunity to contribute. I am operating in good faith here and I ask the Minister and Deputies to observe the clock. I do not want to be interfering all the time.

Solidarity is fine, but we have seen what meat factories have done in practical terms. They are exploiting the situation. That is a fact. The way prices have dropped in the past couple of weeks is completely unwarranted. We need practical solutions. I suggested moving the date for the spreading of chemical fertiliser and the Minister did not address that. We have to extend the grazing season and we have to build up a bank of grass when the rain comes. Stock will need to be kept out well into the autumn and early winter and we have to get that date extended. This is a practical step that the Minister can take. I expect that payment dates will be brought forward as in other years. However, we are going to head into a serious welfare situation on many farms. The Minister can talk about extra credit but the money involved has to be paid back. We are coming out of what was an extremely expensive spring for all farms. Farmers' finances are in a bad way. The banks will say to the Minister that they are available to talk but the reality is that they are putting farmers with overdrafts pressure and they are forcing them into situations that are untenable. The Minister needs to find practical solutions. Live exports and markets for stock will be hugely important in order that we might try to get the maximum number of cattle out of this country before winter arrives.

The Deputy will be aware that a substantial consignment of live beef exports is about to go to Libya shortly. The level of live exports is much increased, and that is important. At this stage, we are not ruling out any measures. I take the Deputy's point about the date for the application of chemical fertiliser but that is some way off yet. It is the middle of July. Our information on-----

We might not get the opportunity to put the point to the Minister for a while.

I am sure the Deputy will find ways and means to do so.

The picture in respect of spring barley is not as depressing as that which the Deputy paints. The information we have is that while some of the later planted spring barley crop is challenged, it is not by any means a uniform situation. We also understand that this is a regional issue and that the majority of the crop is not affected at this stage. All options are on the table. Matters relating to low-yielding cows, cows with high somatic cell counts, animals that are not in calf and disposing of stock - I appreciate that feeds into the point the Deputy makes about prices - are all individual farm management issues that need to be considered. Teagasc is disseminating advice on these matters at present. We will look at all of the issues around prompt, early payments, fertiliser application dates, etc. We face a significant challenge.

Top
Share