Yes to milk 2%
Fianna Fáil MEPs Brian Crowley, Liam Aylward and Sean O Neachtain said on Tuesday the milk quota increase will apply to all subsequent years.
Brian Crowley, MEP and President of the UEN political group in the European Parliament, said the increase will amount to 5.5 million tonnes of milk per year from Irish dairy farms.
“This is an opportunity for Irish milk farmers and for Irish industry to take advantage of high global milk prices, and this increase will help to meet the increase in demand for milk around the world at this time.”
Liam Aylward MEP said the European and world markets offer enough market opportunities for additional quantities of milk to be supplied.
The MEPs said agreement of a 2% increase has already gone though official channels in Brussels.
Sean O’Neachtain, MEP, said the increase in milk production will ensure a soft landing in the context of the abolition of milk quotas in Europe from the year 2015 onwards.”
IFA National Dairy Committee Chairman Richard Kennedy, said, “This proposal, though conservative, goes in the right direction.”
Mr Kennedy said this quota increase must benefit all milk producers in Ireland.
He said he expected most member states will be unable to supply the extra 2% allowed.
IFA had originally proposed a 3% increase.
