Dealers only sale
The issue came to the fore at a recent meeting of Limerick IFA where Noel Woulfe, of the county’s IFA livestock committee, said it is no longer acceptable that genuine farmers be subject to a restriction on sale of cattle which is not applied to cattle dealers.
He said: “When a farmer buys cattle, and if there is an animal among them that he wants to re-sell, he has to hold the animal for a minimum of 43 days before the animal can be offered for sale again. But if a cattle dealer buys, he is allowed to re-sell the animal the following day. Farmers are being badly treated with this rule, and it should be removed immediately”, he demanded.
Michael Roche, IFA County Chairman, said Limerick IFA supports removal of this “very discriminatory” measure. “Why should farmers be treated different? It does not make any sense to me.”
It was unanimously decided to send a resolution to the IFA National Council, requesting that the requirement to hold animals purchased by a farmer for at least 43 days before resale be abolished.
