Farmers party at end of milk quotas
However, about 800km away in Brussels, farmers who fear milk markets will collapse without quotas will drive their tractors and light fires in the Place du Luxembourg, as a protest action.
From next Wednesday, EU dairy farmers will be able to produce as much milk as they want, and farmers in the village of Ninemilehouse, near Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary, are among those who will mark this historic rural change.
Local musician John Bermingham, a former dairy farmer, has written a song to mark the event.
Organiser Walter Power said: ‘I think this is the biggest event since we got rid of the Black and Tans.
“It is going to bring about massive change in rural areas and we should mark it.”
The ‘goodbye to quotas’ party will include the symbolic milking of a cow under the quota regime for the last time by Mr Power’s father Paddy, aged 80.
After midnight, four 12-year-olds will take over the milking — and they will be among the first in Europe to milk a cow in the post-quota era.
However, the European Milk Board, which represents 18 dairy farmer groupings in the EU (including Ireland’s ICMSA), says the last day of the EU milk quota system, after 32 years, will leave dairy farmers in Europe with even less market power.
The EMB warns that milk producers could drown in waves of surplus milk, and says its symbolic action in Brussels next week is a wake-up call for politicians.
Almost two thirds of Irish dairy farmers plan to increase milk output, according to the latest findings by Ipsos MRBI for AIB.
Younger farmers and those in Leinster are planning the greatest increases in milk supplies. Farmers in Connaught/Ulster are least likely to consider an output increase.
Nearly half the farmers planning increased supplies expect to increase milk deliveries as much as 10% in the next five years.
More than one in 10 expect to increase by more than 30%.
Expanding herd size was the principal strategy for increased milk output among farmers in Leinster.
Increasing milk yield per cow, improving on-farm techniques and grass utilisation were more commonly cited by farmers in Munster, in the Ipsos MRBI findings for AIB.
Anne Finnegan, AIB’s head of agri sector, said: “While the opportunity to increase output is open to all dairy farmers, it is important to remember that increased farm profitability is as dependent on cost control and technical management as it is on scale .’’
