Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 26 March 2014
2. Deputy Martin Ferris asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he has attempted to procure export markets for live Irish beef to help alleviate the crisis being experienced by farmers here. [13993/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Minister is probably aware of the reduction, not the collapse, in beef prices. My question pertains to live exports. What has he done about live exports? Has he opened new markets abroad? What is the potential in this regard?
That is a very reasonable question. There are difficulties in the beef market, particularly in the case of bull beef. We need to consider and are considering alternative outlets for farmers to try to ensure they get full value for their animals. I am aware of the difficulties being experienced in the beef sector by farmers with regard to certain categories of animals. However, exports of live cattle were up by some 25% in 2013 and from the start of this year to 9 March, the total live export figure stood at 41,943. Indications from live animal exporters are that the higher level of live exports will continue. Live export volumes were further boosted by a recent shipment of 2,500 bulls to Libya. The medium-term effect of the increased live exports will be a reduction in the availability of cattle for slaughtering later in the year and into next year and this should result in higher cattle prices for farmers.
Since my appointment as Minister, I have been very active in developing relationships in new and expanding international markets for dairy, beef and lamb products, with a view to raising the profile of Ireland and increasing international confidence in Irish production and control systems. My aim is to provide a platform for long-term trading relationships in these sectors, particularly in new and emerging markets to which I have led trade missions, including China, the United States, Japan, Algeria and the Gulf states in the Middle East. Moreover, there is ongoing close collaboration between my Department, Bord Bia and Irish embassies on improving market access and these initiatives have led to a number of notable successes in securing access to Irish beef from authorities in Japan, Singapore, Egypt and Iran. As recently as January, Lebanon agreed to reopen its market to Irish beef, sheepmeat and cooked meats. We are making very good progress in gaining access to the US market which will be very valuable. There is a formal working group, including the Chinese authorities, with a view to trying to gain access to the Chinese market. This work will take a little time. A considerable effort is rightly being made in my Department to try to seek new outlets for Irish meat. Let us not forget that as we export nearly 90% of all beef we produce, we must constantly find and develop new markets, including markets for live exports, particularly at a time when there is clearly an oversupply of a certain category of beef, namely, bull beef, in Ireland. That oversupply will last only for another couple of weeks, after which I hope we will see a normalisation of prices.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House
With regard to the live cattle export trade, I am very conscious that this trade, whether to other EU member states or third countries, serves a dual purpose in stimulating price competition for domestic cattle and satisfying a real demand in overseas markets for specific types of animal. It thus complements the processing beef trade by providing alternative market outlets, thereby underpinning the meat and livestock industry generally.
My Department, in co-operation with Bord Bia and Irish embassies, will continue to support actively the development of both the live export trade and beef trade through the provision of market information, developing market access and promotional activity.
I thank the Minister for the reply. It is welcome that there was an increase in live exports of 25% in 2013. The Minister mentioned a shipment of 2,500 bulls to Libya, which is also to be welcomed. However, there are a number of problems in the beef sector. One is that, despite the Minister's best efforts, not enough bulls are being exported. There are not enough live exports in total. Furthermore, there is a problem with processors' cartels operating. They are able to manipulate the market. An overlapping question concerns the fact that if there is a cartel operating that is manipulating and controlling prices in the market, there is a lack of live exports that would otherwise help to put pressure on the cartels to give market value to the farmer and producer. All of these points must be taken into consideration and none should be considered in isolation. The Minister mentioned China, Japan, the United States and other markets opening up. These are not live export markets.
The immediate problem concerns live exports and, as Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív said, bulls.
Live exports have increased significantly this year. Almost 42,000 animals have been exported live this year. Live exports are really important in providing price competition among the factories and processors in Ireland. However, that is what they should be seen to be doing; we should not be seeking to have a huge volume of live exports because we want to try to keep the processing jobs in Ireland. There is a balance to be struck. Live exports are important to keep the factories honest, as farmers would put it, and provide competition to influence prices here, but we should still be trying to find a way to try to obtain the best price possible and slaughter as many animals as we can in Ireland in order to keep the processing and added-value jobs here.
We are working on trying to open new markets. Last year we worked very hard to try to get shipments to Libya for the first time in many years. This involves a ship-certification process. My Department has been working on prioritising this issue. We set very high standards, however, in terms of the quality of ships allowed to transport live animals. This is because we live on an island and realise ships carrying animals to north Africa, for example, must cross the Bay of Biscay in the middle of winter. It is a rough sea at the best of times. Therefore, we need to have the highest ship-certification standards in Europe and we do. The approach is working and there is an outlet which I hope is offering an option to farmers who are not getting the prices they want.
Live exportation removes pressure in terms of oversupply. Where there is oversupply and a cartel is operating-----
As long as the price is right.
I applaud and I am fully supportive of the Minister's point on jobs retention and processing. However, if producers are not making a living, the market will collapse in any case because they will no longer produce. This aspect must be considered also. It is welcome that the Minister is trying to open more markets abroad for live exports in addition to slaughtered beef. While this is welcome, the focus in the short term must be on trying to reduce oversupply through live exports.
We are trying to do that. We are also trying to put pressure on factories to kill more bulls. In this regard, I have met with officials from the factories and farming organisations and have received assurances that the factories will continue to kill a sufficient number of bulls the deal with the over-supply. Approximately 6,000 bulls per week have been killed over the past number of weeks.
That is the reason the price is decreasing.
There is a problem in that the market does not want this type of meat. There is an issue in relation to meat from bulls over 20 months. The markets are looking for steers and heifers from Ireland, generally. That is the view not only of the processors but of the buyers to whom I have spoken about this issue. We have an issue in that there is over-supply of a product that the markets are not currently demanding and this has driven prices down. It is important that an alternative market such as live cattle exports is found in order that we can address the issue of over-supply. That is what we are trying to do.
