Vol. 422 No. 5
18 Mr. D'Arcy asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if his attention has been drawn to (1) the serious development in the pig industry whereby a very high percentage of weaners are being produced by the co-ops (2) the risk this monopoly is causing to family farm pig producers and (3) the fact that one processor commands 40 per cent of the business.
60 Mr. D'Arcy asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if his attention has been drawn to (1) the serious development in the pig industry whereby a very high percentage of weaners are being produced by the co-ops, (2) the risk this monopoly is causing to family farm pig producers and (3) the fact that one processor commands 40 per cent of the business.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 18 and 60 together.
Over the past few years the pig industry, at both producer and processor levels has evolved from a fragmented, and at times an uneconomic and uncompetitive, enterprise into a concentrated and efficient industry capable of competing successfully on all markets.
The Government programme for the modernisation of the industry has been an important contributory factor to this change which has resulted in increased sow output, higher pig numbers, a greater volume of exports and reduced dependence on imports on the home market.
This programme in essence is based on the need to have a smaller number of large processing plants in order to maintain and develop the industry in the highly competitive EC and world markets. In this context, I do not regard the proportion of weaners in the hands of co-ops and millers, estimated at about 26 per cent, as excessive. The largest processor in the country accounts for about 32 per cent, not 40 per cent, of slaughterings at present.
