IFA’s strength in numbers
With some of the most powerful world leaders opposing European farmers led by UK Prime Minister Tony Blair from within and US President George Bush from outside, it’s a huge challenge to advance the cause of farmers in an EU member state.
But IFA have not been found wanting, and as usual, set the pace for other EU farmers’ organisations.
Just now, farmers in the UK are clamouring for what they describe as the “special deal” won by Ireland to offset 2004 applications for beef premia in excess of the national quota.
Taking advantage of their last chance before decoupling, Irish farmers overshot the quota, leaving 29,000 facing an average 23% cut (€3,295) off the premia payments for their animals.
IFA led the fight for compensation, giving Minister Mary Coughlan their full backing, and she persuaded EU Commissioner Boel to contribute €8.6 million, with the Irish state bringing total funding to €17.5 million.
Even though UK farmers were hit even harder, by a 30% cut off beef premia (costing Northern Ireland farmers £12m), it’s only now they are looking for equal treatment, on Ireland’s coat-tails.
John Dillon and his team can claim much of the credit for highlighting the overshoot plight of farmers (mind you, the Irish Cattle Traders’ and Stockowners’ Association were first to bring it to public attention).
The current IFA leadership also deserves credit for making the most of their membership strength.
IFA Telecom, its company which offers phone and internet services to IFA members, is set to record a profit this year of between €250,000 and €300,000.
Now, IFA Power has been launched, which will supply IFA members with electricity. But profits to strengthen IFA are only part of the plan: both companies will also reduce farmers’ bills, putting money in their pockets.
Both developments indicate the bargaining strength you have in business, if you can deliver 85,000 loyal customers.
IFA’s latest joint initiative with Richard Keenan and Company, on the cost effective use of native Irish cereals and straw in dairy and beef rations, could cause just as big a shake-up in the grain market, if members pull together and trade with each other, cutting out grain assemblers’ and millers’ margins.
The same recipe works in the beef industry. IFA preaches the gospel of hard sell to members who have cattle ready for the factory; if members respond, they have it in their power to control the beef market here, without stepping over the line of boycotting meat factories, which landed IFA in trouble previously with the Competition Authority.
Farmers acting together, within the law, have strength which individual farmers can only dream of. IFA should continue to concentrate its efforts on that front.
Instead, John Dillon has said he will concentrate on WTO negotiations, beef market management, EU sugar reform and the new Partnership talks, over the final six months of his term in office.
Partnership is an obvious area for attention, as farming fights to hold its place in an otherwise booming economy.
But there is little IFA can do in the context of WTO talks, where G8 governments and the world’s biggest food companies make the running.
In the beef market and sugar reform areas also, IFA can do no more than monitor the situation, maintain communication with the Agriculture Minister, and keep members informed.
On both the WTO and EU beef market fronts, IFA’s best policy may be to consolidate its cattle farmer members into a powerful trading bloc which would have real power in an EU market which is expected to be short of beef until 2012.
In the sugar reform negotiations, IFA’s first move must be to get all Sugar Beet Section members singing from the one sheet.
