Farm lobby sets out partnership provisos
ICMSA leader Jackie Cahill said a new agreement must deliver a more balanced result for farmers.
He warned of the inevitable results that will follow any agreement that ignores loss of competitiveness in the agri-food sector.
“A model that is based on a continued rise in wage costs, while returns from the market place are falling is not sustainable, and will lead, inevitably, to the kind of unbalanced and unacceptable outcomes that have marred previous agreements,” he said.
Mr Cahill said the nitrates and phosphorus debacle would have to be resolved in a manner that recognised specific Irish conditions and was based on sound science.
If it was not resolved, the ICMSA would not be signing up for anything, he said, urging the Government, as a sign of good intent, to formally defer the statutory instrument giving effect to the regulations.
Macra na Feirme’s focus in the partnership talks will be on getting young people established in farming and creating the conditions for young people to have a viable future in the industry.
President Colm Markey said young people are no longer interested in farming purely for the love of the land or out of a sense of duty.
“They are looking at the farm as a business and assessing it on the same principles as any other business. They want a return for their labour and capital and unless it can match what’s available elsewhere they will not take it on,” he said.
