High costs, low income sector needs attention

DECLINING revenues and rapidly increasing costs in the dairy industry are not sustainable, warned ICOS President Padraig Gibbons when addressing the Taoiseach and social partners at the recent Sustaining Progress National Agreement plenary meeting.

He said profits in dairy processing and farming are under severe pressure, and the pay deals in any future national programme would have to take account of this difficulty.

He warned that the agri-food sector in general has faced increases in energy costs of up to 70% since 2000, and labour costs have gone up by more than 31% in the same period.