Rea did everything for the betterment of farm families

A VOICE that has been fearlessly outspoken in the best interest of farmers and their families for almost half a century has been silenced with the untimely passing of Joe Rea.

Since his early days as a member of Macra na Feirme his objective changed little. He worked to achieve rightful recognition for farming as a profession, and justice for farmers to enable them to provide a decent living from the land for their families. He believed they were entitled to that, and worked untiringly to achieve that objective, to which he was totally committed.

Outwardly, he mostly targeted the economic side of agriculture, but he was really very much a family man at heart. In everything he did, the aim was the betterment of the farm family, the provision of a better income from farming to ensure a quality of life for the farmer’s wife and family.