Farmers urged to attend sugar beet protest rally
Jim O’Regan, chairman of the IFA Sugar Beet Section, organisers of the protest, said beet growers, their families and farmers from all over the country will take part.
The demonstration is being held in advance of the critical EU Agricultural Ministers’ meeting in Brussels next week, where the reform proposals will be the major issue on the agenda and are earmarked for decision, in advance of the WTO ministerial meeting in Hong Kong in December.
“I would urge everybody to turn out in force at the Mallow protest and send a clear message that the proposals are unacceptable,” he said.
Mr O’Regan warned that the EU’s price-cutting approach to regulate and rebalance the EU sugar market will wipe out the livelihoods of Ireland’s 3,700 beet growers.
“It will also have a direct effect on the local community, as there are 140 permanent and 80 temporary staff employed in the Mallow sugar factory and more than 60 people employed in sales and administration in other locations.”
Mr O’Regan said EU proposals will impose a 47% cut in the price of sugar beet in Ireland from 2007 and will result in an income loss of over 67% to Irish beet growers.
“These proposals are unprecedented in the history of CAP reform and aim to shut down sugar production in countries like Ireland,” he said.
Mr O’Regan said the proposals from the EU Commission combined with the demands for import access in the WTO negotiations would, if implemented, extinguish the Irish sugar beet industry.
The industry is worth €80m annually to farmers and €140m in total to the Irish economy.
Mr O’Regan said that when upstream and downsteam supply and service industries and seasonal employment are included, up to 8,000 jobs depend on sugar production in Ireland. He called on the Government to defend Irish beet growers’ livelihoods.
“Irish beet growers cannot survive if the Commission’s proposals are adopted. The EU proposal to cut the beet price to €25/t would make beet growing in Ireland totally uneconomic, even on our most efficient farms,” he said.
Mr O’Regan said if the EU Commission gets its way and forces peripheral countries such as Ireland out of production, then Irish growers must be fully compensated.
“It is politically unacceptable that a private company, such as Greencore, could benefit from the proposed quota buy-out scheme, while growers see their investments in machinery and quotas go down the drain,” he said.
Mr O’Regan said all growers who lose their viability in the reform must be offered full compensation to give up their delivery rights.
