Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 2 December 2020
186. Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of tonnes of barley, oats, wheat, soya beans and maize imported in each of the past five years; the origin of the imports by country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40608/20]
View answerApproximately 5 million tonnes of compound feed is manufactured in Ireland annually. This production comprises 3.5 million tonnes of feed ingredients imported from EU and Third Countries, with the remainder supplied from home-grown cereals.
The main feed ingredients imported are protein supplements, maize and maize by-products, soyabean meal and rapeseed meal, much of which originates in the USA, Brazil, Argentina and Canada.
Feed producers have indicated a clear interest in sourcing reliable and consistent supplies of home-produced proteins. This would require provision of further processing infrastructure and a commitment from both producers and processors to work together on this.
The requested information on imports attached is from data supplied by the CSO. The figures set out the imports of barley, oats, wheat, soya beans and maize imported into Ireland during the period 2015 – 2019 and include figures up to the end of Quarter 3 for 2020. The figures do not distinguish between imports of these commodities for feed or food use.
