Latest news with #IrishFarmers'Association
Agriland
2 days ago
- General
- Agriland
Co. Roscommon man wins Muintir na Tíre community award
A Co. Roscommon man has been named as the inaugural recipient of the Muintir na Tíre Community Person of the Year award. Bernard Kearney, from Fourmilehouse, Co. Roscommon was given the award at an event at Muintir na Tíre premises in Tipperary Town on Saturday, May 31. Bernard Kearney receives the 2025 Muintir na Tíre Community Person of the Year award, from Jackie Meally, national president of Muintir na Tíre. Source: Martin Quinn Kearney worked as a development officer with the organisation for over 30 years. According to Muintir na Tíre, throughout Kearney's life, he has been a firm believer in the mission statement and ethos of the organisation's founder, Canon John Hayes. During Kearney's time as a development officer, the Roscommon man was well known for his involvement with community text alert groups. Muintir na Tíre believes that Kearney's commitment to his local community, for nearly 50 years, can be seen through the many projects and initiatives that he has been involved in. The award was presented to Kearney by Muintir na Tíre national president, Jackie Meally. The event was preceded by a ceremony in Bansha, Co. Tipperary for the late Canon John Hayes, the founder of Muintir na Tíre. To mark 40 years of the community alert and text alert programme, Meally and the Irish Farmers' Association's (IFA) deputy president, Alice Doyle unveiled a new memorial bench. Muintir na Tíre In other news, local community groups are now able to apply for funding and mentoring under a programme to 'protect and celebrate' local heritage, including natural heritage. The Heritage Keepers programme is now open to applications for its fifth year. The programme is open to community groups and primary schools across Ireland in both urban and rural locations. Organisers of the initiative said that this year's programme will have an increased number of places for both community groups and schools. Heritage Keepers is an initiative of Burrenbeo Trust, and is funded by The Sunflower Charitable Foundation, through Community Foundation Ireland.
Agriland
28-05-2025
- General
- Agriland
DAFM hoping to have GAEC 2 appeals system in place next month
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) is hoping to have an appeals system for Good Agricultural and Environmental Conditions 2 (GAEC 2) in place shortly. Michael Moloney, senior inspector in the integrated controls division of the department, was speaking at an Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) meeting in Co. Kerry last night (Tuesday, May 27). GAEC 2 is the conditionality standard of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) related to the protection of peatlands and wetlands. It formally entered into force on May 1, which means that any works carried out before that date do not come under the scope of the condition. GAEC 2 Moloney reiterated that there are no additional actions for a farmer and they can continue to farm as normal under GAEC 2. Under the condition, the senior inspector said that the maintenance of an existing drain on is permitted and replacement is acceptable. However, he said that new drainage on never-drained parcels of land will require planning permission or an exemption from the local authority, as is currently the case under national legislation. He added that the deepening of existing drains or the extension of the drained area beyond what was previously existed is considered new drainage. Michael Moloney, senior inspector with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) Moloney told the meeting that ploughing on GAEC 2 lands is permitted to a maximum depth of 30cm on grass and arable land, which he said should not impact on farmers. Under GAEC 2, ploughing for reseeding grassland will be permitted one in every four years and annual ploughing is allowed on arable land. Appeals Approximately 35,000 farmers have been contacted by DAFM in relation to the 540,000ha covered by GAEC 2. Farmers or their advisors can check if their land is covered by the condition through the AgFood online portal. 'There will be an appeals mechanism established. We will have that out in due course, hopefully early next month. Farmers can appeal it. 'They'll have to provide evidence of soil samples etc., showing that there isn't 30% organic matter and the depth of the peat is not 30-45cm. 'The only person who really needs to appeal this is those that basically want to do something on this undrained soils in 2025. 'We'll prioritise those because we don't have the capacity to deal with a large number of people or appeals that just want to appeal it for the sake of it,' he said. Moloney noted that GAEC 2 is part of the current CAP cycle and may or may not be part of the post-2027 CAP. The DAFM senior inspector said that lands covered by GAEC 2 do not carry any legal designation, such as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) or Special Protection Areas (SPAs) 'GAEC 2 is not a designation, it is a classification for the basis of conditionality and it is baseline or minimum,' he said. Kerry IFA chair Jason Fleming said it is a 'massive inconvenience' for farmers having to apply for planning permission for new drains or deepening existing drains on GAEC 2 lands. 'I know you don't like using the word designation, but it feels to us like a form of designation,' he said.
Agriland
27-05-2025
- Business
- Agriland
Farm org: Cooperation with UK ‘step forward' for potato seed sector
The Irish Farmers' Association's (IFA) potato chair, Sean Ryan has said that the re-establishment of closer trade relations between the EU and the UK is a 'step forward' for the potato seed trade. The EU and the UK have agreed to start negotiations on a sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) deal on sanitary, phytosanitary, food safety and other products which will allow the trade of seed potato to re-commence. Ryan said: 'A new SPS agreement will now need to be put in place, the timeframe for which has not yet been disclosed. 'The ambition of the trade deal will be to make trade easier. However, the devil will be in the detail.' According to the IFA, prior to Brexit, Ireland was heavily reliant on the UK market for potato seed, and imported approximately 6,000t each year. The farming organisation said it has 'extensively lobbied' for a temporary derogation to allow seed to be imported from Scotland since Brexit. It also met with Irish MEPs in Brussels last November (2024), and in March (2025), and presented a joint letter to the EU Commission, through Copa Cogeca, requesting a temporary derogation. 'The IFA will continue to advocate for the expansion of the Irish potato seed sector, but this will take time and additional investment. A temporary derogation to allow seed from Scotland is necessary,' Ryan explained. Potato seed Last week (May 19), the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen called the 'historic' EU – UK summit a success. President von der Leyen met with British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer in London for the first EU – UK summit since the UK's withdrawal from the EU. The commission president believes that the EU and the UK are 'opening a new chapter in a unique relationship' with the summit. According to President von der Leyen, a decision has been made to facilitate trade flows of agri-food products between the EU and the UK. She said: 'It means more certainty and more stability for our farmers, food producers and fishermen and fisherwomen on both sides of the channel. Safer food, with greater trust from consumers. 'Together with the Windsor Framework, this will bring additional benefits for Northern Ireland. It will further ease the movement of agri-food goods between Britain and Northern Ireland.' 'Northern Ireland will continue to enjoy dual access to both the EU single market and the UK internal market,' von der Leyen added.
Irish Examiner
21-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
12.5% drop in dairy heifer calf numbers this year
Dairy female calf registrations have fallen by 12.5% compared to last year. Numbers are down by more than 45,000 for dairy heifer calves compared to this time last year, reports the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF). This reduction is expected to result in fewer replacement heifers available in 2027. This drop follows on from a 4.4% reduction in dairy herd registrations between 2024 and 2023. ICBF reports that in 2023, between January 1 and May 15, 379,858 dairy heifer calves were registered. This year, only 317,780 dairy heifer calves were registered within the same period. The total number of registered dairy calves has also dropped by 2%, a reduction of more than 28,000 head to the national dairy herd compared to this time last year. This is following the slight increase of 0.1% recorded between 2023 and 2024. This report comes in the wake of the Irish Farmers' Association warning from dairy chair Martin McElearney, who was deeply concerned regarding the stock statistics published by ICBF. Discussing the current stock numbers, Mr McElearney said: "Should dairy replacement breeding trends remain the same for 2025, we are looking at a significant collapse of the dairy herds in two years' time." 'The number of dairy replacements born this year will be nowhere near sufficient to sustain the Irish dairy herd at current levels, particularly when the number of dairy stock being lost to bovine TB is accounted for,' said Mr McElearney. As of May 1, the number of first-time calved heifers has also dropped by 9.5%, about 29,000 fewer animals compared to 2024 figures. The predicted outcome of these declining numbers would suggest the market for dairy heifers is likely to be strong for the next few years because of the sharp decline in both female calves and first-calved heifers. In 2024, there were 304,514 dairy first-calved heifers that had calved up to May 1, a small increase of 2.4% from 2023's number of 297,474. "We are now in the middle of peak breeding season. It is vital that farmers consider using more dairy AI —both sexed and conventional — this year to ensure that they are breeding enough replacements for their herds," Mr McElearney said, regarding the figures. ICBF is strongly encouraging farmers to increase the number of dairy straws used on their herd this year in an effort to minimise the predicted shortage of dairy replacements in the national herd in 2027. The federation explains only 78% of dairy females born calve down as two-year-old heifers, so for a 100-cow herd, a farmer must aim to calve down a minimum of 25 dairy females to achieve a 20% replacement rate. It has told farmers to err on the side of caution and to allow for some choice when selecting females — it is advisable to target at least 30 dairy females. This would result in a minimum of 60 cows needing to be put in-calf to a dairy bull within a 100-cow herd. In the same report, ICBF found there was a drop of 21.2% in dairy male calves registered in 2025, with the number reading 214,055 by May 15. This comes as a further decline from 2024's numbers, which were a decline of 16% from 2023's registered male calves. Registered dairy-beef calves have increased by 9.6% registered births, which brings the total to 851,347 for May 15, 2025. The trend follows on from 2024, which saw 776,665 registered births of dairy-beef calves in the same period, an increase of 9.9% from 2023 figures.
Irish Examiner
20-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Farmers protest in 'flash action' at European Commission offices against removal of Cap budget
The Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) and the group representing co-ops held a protest in Dublin on Tuesday warning against a plan to to remove the Cap budget in favour of a once-off funding approach to the EU budget. Farmers and farming representatives took part in the "flash action" at the European Commission offices on Tuesday morning. The IFA and Irish Co-operative Organisation Society (ICOS) protest coincided with a flash action organised by Copa Cogeca, the largest representative union of more than 22 million European farmers in Brussels. The EU Commission has put forward proposals to amalgamate Common Agricultural Policy (Cap) into a single fund. The move has sparked concern in the agricultural sector, which warns funding could be stripped back over the years as it will not be ring-fenced. Irish Farmers' Association deputy president Alice Doyle said they have been warning against the consequences of the changes to the Cap budget. "The Cap budget has been in place since the Treaty of Rome, way back in the 50s, and it was put in place to make sure that we would have food security across Europe, which was paramount and is still paramount today," she said. "The production of food is very important. Farmers have to be supported financially to produce food. We are producing the best food in the world, in Ireland and across Europe." Farmers at the protest in Dublin on Tuesday morning. She said if food security is to be there, farmers are going to have to be supported in the continuous production of that food. "The Cap budget is what gives that finance to the farmers to help them produce that food," Ms Doyle said. "If that budget is subsumed into the main European budget, it can be pilfered at any time, to be used for any purpose. We want this ring-fenced, as it has always been from the very beginning, ring-fenced to support farmers across Europe, and here in Ireland in particular, in the production of food, and to make sure that we have food security. She added: "If it is not ring-fenced, the income of farmers would be reduced dramatically, because we all depend on that direct payment coming from Europe. That's part of our basic income scheme. "The second thing is, it would have a huge impact on rural Ireland because farmers are based in rural Ireland, and every penny they earn is spent in rural Ireland." Edward Carr, a diary farmer from Tipperary, president of the ICOS and chairman of Arrabawn Co-operative, said the Cap budget was being targeted. "The proposed changes are very concerning for the future of farmers within our country," he said. "It's concerning because the Cap was brought in few years ago for us as a protection that we produce cheap food. "It has to be taken into consideration that we are probably one of the best countries on the globe to produce sustainable food in a sustainable manner, while protecting the environment. "I think it's just come to the stage where farmers have to stand up for themselves and protect themselves. The future of this cheap, sustainable food being produced has to be protected. It's time for Europe to pay more heed to this."
