Midland Farmer - September 2023

10 MIDLAND FARMER
September 2023
Martin Contracts
Rathskeagh, Ballymore,
Co Westmeath
087 675 8908
martincontracts@gmail.com
Farm & Industrial Buildings
- Mobile Welding
All types of steel supplied
- Welded & Erected
Ballinalack, Mullingar, Co. Westmeath
T: 086 803 4395 • E: finnan.john@live.com
‘Farmers cannot continue
to sustain this level of cuts’
Minister accused of ‘sitting idly by while sheep sector is collapsing’
Meat factories and the government have been
heavily criticised by the national sheep chair
of the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) for the
“lack of meaningful support” for the sheep
sector.
Kevin Comiskey said that an estimated €10.5
million have been wiped off sheep farmers’
incomes in 2023 to date, when compared to the
price differential from last year.
The crisis in the sheep sector is “deepening”
as prices continue to lag behind last year’s levels,
with farmers in a critical loss-making situation,
according to the IFA national sheep
chair.
Accusing Minister for Agriculture, Food and
the Marine, Charlie McConalogue and the government
of “sitting idly by while the sector is
collapsing”, he said:
“Factories and the government are acutely
aware of the loss-making situation sheep
farmers are in but refuse to support them.”
Minister McConalogue has “failed” to take
action on the situation of Irish sheep farmers
which, Comiskey said can be only addressed
with immediate direct supports.
“The minister must come forward and provide
farmers with a €30/ewe payment by building
on the supports of the Sheep Improvement
Scheme (SIS) of just €12/ewe,” he said.
The IFA national sheep chair urged the minister
to indicate what actions he is going to
undertake to resolve the “challenging situation”
on sheep farms as a matter of urgency.
SHEEP SECTOR
Input costs on sheep farms have increased by
over 40%, according to Comiskey, which is
“effectively eroding all margins in an
extremely low-income sector”.
“Teagasc figures showed income levels on
sheep farms dropped by over 80% last year to
just €7/ewe which included the [previous
Sheep Welfare Scheme] SWS payment.”
“Farmers cannot continue to sustain this
level of cuts, and confidence in the sector is
extremely low and farmers are exiting the sector
due to the lack of support displayed to
farmers,” he said.
Speaking about the impact of New Zealand
(NZ) and Australian sheepmeat imports to the
UK on Irish sheep prices earlier this week,
Comiskey said Irish farmers “can’t compete”
with such low prices.
Stating that NZ lamb is coming in at €3.95/kg,
and Australian lamb is coming in at €2.89/kg,
the IFA national sheep chair said:
“That’s supplying the UK market, and the UK
lamb is making its way to the European market
and distorting the market and putting it
under pressure.”
“You can’t compete, our biggest market is
between the UK and France, and when NZ and
Australia are putting in lamb at those prices,
we can’t compete at over €6.00/kg.”
A new engineering company
All work considered
Chris 085 823 9365
Mark 083 377 4811
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E: SparkPlantAgri@outlook.com
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