Conference addresses major issues

BREEDING cows for health and fertility, variations in producer prices, the decline in the number of farmers in dairying, planning for a future in the sector and challenges for the industry globally were among the issues at the second Teagasc national dairy conference in Cavan yesterday.

Food Minister Brendan Smith, who opened the event, said decoupled support payments linked not to current production but rather to compliance with several environmental and other conditions is an element of CAP reform which has substantial bearing on farm income.

“This creates a whole new dimension to dairy farming and allows greater discretion to farmers in their production choices, which will for the future be largely determined by what the market wants,” he said.