ICMSA optimistic that TB meeting will result in ‘focus on farmers'
The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA) has said that it is optimistic that yesterday's (Thursday, May 8) emergency meeting on TB will result in a 'focus on farmers'.
The farm organisation described the meeting as a day of 'intense engagement'.
ICMSA president Denis Drennan said that the focus on farmers is likely to become 'more refined and effective' through 'significant amendments' made to the proposals put forward by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
Drennan said that the ICMSA has insisted that 'considerable changes' will have to be made to the new proposals if they were going to be effective and treat farmers fairly.
The farm leader said that Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon 'seemed to appreciate' this point.
'ICMSA has very serious concerns in relation to specific proposals and we had bilateral engagement with the minister and his officials on the detailed specifics. But we also highlighted several areas not included in the document that demonstrably will need to be addressed,' Drennan said.
One of those areas, according to the ICSMA president, is 'the role of other 'players' in animal movements'.
'We also pointed to the impact of infrastructure projects and forestry and the obvious need for a single point of contact for farmers impacted by TB. Quite clearly, wildlife and animal movements play a role on TB and ICMSA is calling for specific time-based commitments on the wildlife issues.
'We insisted that the commitments and obligations on all players must be clearly spelt out and time-lined in the revised document and the science basis for the proposals clearly spelt out. The current document has very specific commitments and requirements for farmers to meet but for no one else,' Drennan said.
He added: 'This point needs to be repeated; all players involved, from the department to vets, need to have their obligations and commitments specified and set down with agreed timelines for implementation. For too long, the burden of TB has been placed on farmers alone and this cannot continue.'
According to Drennan, the minister undertook to revise the department's current set of proposals and to revert to farm organisations.
'ICMSA expects a speedy turnaround and the tabling of significantly amended, and improved, proposals that will allow the whole sector move forward on the basis of an agreed and proactive approach that will halt and then reverse the current surge of TB,' Drennan said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Agriland
an hour ago
- Agriland
Watch: ‘It's in Europe's interest to move off fossil fuels'
The Climate Change Advisory Council's chairperson, Marie Donnelly has said that Europe should 'move off fossil fuels' to address issues with climate change. Donnelly was a panelist at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine's (DAFM) Agriculture and Climate Change conference in Dublin Castle today (June 5). Climate Change Advisory Council's chairperson, Marie Donnelly She told Agriland that Ireland's climate legislation is in place, but that it is 'not fast enough, and not deep enough'. Donnelly said: 'At a European level, one of the political questions that's center stage right now is whether the commission will endorse the recommendations of the European Scientific Body for the 2040 Carbon Budget, which is a 90% reduction in emissions. 'It's quite a political discussion, members of the EU Parliament are discussing it. The commission is debating it, and we expect something in September.' The Climate Change Advisory chair believes that there is a 'greater awareness' for farming as an industry, and as a way of life, and outlined the role that the EU will play in counteracting climate change. 'It's very important that Europe, as part of it's general approach, thinks about Europe itself, it's own self sufficiency, and it's own efficiency,' Donnelly said. 'When we look at climate change in Europe, it's very pertinent. Europe is the fast warming continent in the world.' 'What is causing global warming faster than anything else? Fossil fuels. Europe has no fossil fuels. We import all of our fossil fuels. Strategically, from a competitiveness point of view, and a security point of view, it's in Europe's interest to move off fossil fuels, as it happens it works for the climate,' Donnelly added. Marie Donnelly Donnelly believes that change is necessary throughout society in order to combat climate change, and that farmers will be impacted. She said: 'To understand what change we need to make, and to support people in making that change, that includes farmers. It might be financial support, new research, new ways of doing things that allow farmers to be efficient and climate active at the same time. 'We have to think of ways to get information out to farmers. Yes it might be financial, but it's more than that, communication, education, dialogue, mutual support, farm leaders, to get message out to adopt new mechanism. 'Farmers have been adopting new methods always. This is not new for farming. If you look at farming 20 years ago, it's not the same as today. It's the nature of farming to modernise as it goes forward,' Donnelly added.
Agriland
an hour ago
- Agriland
ICMSA: Farmers ‘on board' with climate change plans
The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA) president, Denis Drennan has said that despite massive challenges, Irish farmers are engaged in the effort to address climate change. Speaking at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) Agriculture and Climate Change conference, Drennan said that the results and data were now 'showing the fruits' of farmers' efforts. Drennan believes that farmers are committed and 'on board' with plans to mitigate climate change. However, he stressed that farmers needed reassurance that those plans still rested on 'the three pillars of sustainability', including economic, environmental, and social. The ICMSA president said: 'There are challenges ahead that will have to be faced, and even leaving aside the very significant and unfair anomalies in the accountancy framework used for measuring emissions, the most obvious challenge is the ongoing failure of government to step up and support farmers. 'It's this failure of the government to support its own policies and recommendations that is hampering even more encouraging results and data. 'Irish agriculture is leading the way globally in meeting the climate challenge and the ICMSA believes that farmers can, and will, do more if properly supported,' Drennan added. Climate change According to the ICMSA president, the government has to stop 'coming up with reasons for not taking action' on climate change. Drennan believes that Budget 2026 should be used to signal a 'more proactive approach'. He also called on the government to 'work with farmers to make progress' on Ireland's emission targets. Drennan said: 'Work with farmers to make more progress ,or ultimately pay the fines that will be levied, because Ireland falls short on the emissions targets that could have been hit if we'd had the support. 'Budget 2026 is where we'll see if the government understands that choice and has made a decision that is logical on both the environmental and financial fronts,' he added.
Agriland
6 hours ago
- Agriland
€465k post-tax profit for Healy-Rae firm in 2023
By Gordon Deegan A property management firm owned by Minister for State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and farmer, Michael Healy-Rae, linked to the Kerry TD's Rosemont guesthouse accommodating Ukrainians, recorded post-tax profits of €465,860 in 2023. Earlier this year, Deputy Healy Rae was appointed a Minister of State with special responsibility for forestry. Now, new accounts filed by Minister Healy-Rae's Roughty Properties Ltd., show that it recorded the €465,860 post-tax profit in its first year in operation from the date of incorporation for the 12 month 23 day period from May 9, 2022 to May 31, 2023. The abridged accounts do not disclose revenues but they do show that at the end of May 2023, the company's cash funds totalled €555,933. Healy-Rae accounts The overdue accounts were filed after a district court order dated May 13 last extended time in which the annual return could be lodged with the Companies Office. The annual return shows that Minister Healy-Rae owns 100% of the share capital of the company. The independent Kerry TD's entry in the Dáil Register of Members' Interests states that the main activity of Roughty Properties Ltd., is 'management of rental properties'. In the register, Minister Healy-Rae describes himself as an owner of rental properties and his entry lists 17 separate properties for letting including 14 houses. Separate figures published by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth show that Minister Healy-Rae's Rosemont House in Tralee has received €1.22 million over two years and three months to the end of December last. In 2022, Kerry County Council refused planning permission to Roughty Properties Ltd's planning application for a three-storey extension to expand guest capacity at Rosemont Guest House. The new accounts confirm that the Roughty property firm is now Minister Healy-Rae's most profitable enterprise. Plant hire Separate accounts filed earlier this year by Minister Healy-Rae's plant hire firm, Roughty Plant Hire Ltd., show that its accumulated profits increased by €74,887 from €734,024 to €808,911 in the 12 months to the end of April 2024. The post-tax €74,887 profit at the plant hire services business for the 12 months was an 80% increase on the €41,415 post-tax profit for the prior 12 months. During the 12 months the company's cash funds more than doubled from €198,748 to €434,224. Numbers employed at the Kilgarvan-based business during the year declined from 12 to five. Separate accounts for another Michael Healy-Rae firm which operates a fuel station and grocery shop in Kilgarvan show that it recorded post-tax losses of €26,986 last year. Accounts for Black Cap & Company Ltd., show that the firm recorded the post-tax losses of €26,986 in the 12 months to the end of April 2024 are down sharply on the post tax losses of €67,583 in the prior year. Last year, numbers employed by the business declined by one to 15, including directors. The company operates from a building housing a shop at Kilgarvan village. Deputy Healy-Rae's entry to the Dail's Members' Register of Interests lists his other occupations as postmaster, farmer, service station owner and owner of rental properties. The Kerry deputy also has shares in the New York Times. Deputy Healy Rae also has 146ac of farmland/forestry.
