Smith to be general secretary of IFA

THE appointment of Pat Smith as general secretary of the Irish Farmers Association is expected to be announced today.

A special meeting of the IFA’s executive council has been convened to endorse the appointment of Mr Smith as the administrative head of the 86,000 member association.

Last night, an IFA spokesman would only confirm that a special executive council meeting will be held this morning.

Mr Smith is a long-serving official with the IFA, which has 945 branches countrywide. He is currently director of organisation.

He will succeed Michael Berkery, who announced last October that he intended to retire from the position in which he has served for 25 years.

Mr Smith will take over at a testing time for the IFA and the entire agri sector, with pressures on farm incomes increasing.

Issues to be tackled include those arising from the global economic recession, world trade negotiations, market volatility, rising costs, and the impact of European Union policy changes on day-to-day farming.

Mr Smith is regarded as a strong and able administrator who has helped the IFA to provide and develop many new services for members in recent years.

Friends say he will bring to the post of general secretary a distinctive vision of how the IFA should position itself to cope with the challenges it will face in the years ahead.