Clock counts down last minutes of quota restrictions
Jim Duggan a former chairman of Glanbia gave a brief background to how quotas were established and pointed out a reality. “At the time (1984) they were necessary but in due course they gave a good living to many,” he said.
The change “will bring and a lot of challenges a lot of opportunities”, as well as “inevitable price volatility”, he said. Liam Herlihy current chair of Glanbia, and Siobhan Talbot CEO Glanbia, both echoed these sentiments but with Liam laying emphasis on the continuing roll of the family farm.
However, I did wonder how his statement “the abolition of quotas will help protect the family farm”, will work out.
Dr Paddy Wall of UCD and former chair of the food safety board was on hand with some, I thought good advice, to those with concerns, “You don’t have to develop straight away, little boats stay close to the shore. Wait and see how things evolve”.
All this time Nigel Hanrahan’s clock moved closer to midnight. The two cows were moved into position on their platform by 11pm. By a quarter to midnight if you were not in direct line of sight of the main event, the crowd was now several hundred, you had the choice of the three television monitors to observe history.
On Abigail’s instruction, Paddy Power senior, a fit 80-year-old placed the cluster with ease on the last cow to be milked in Europe under the quota.
It was five minutes to midnight. the mini-milker purred quietly, the clock ticked onwards, cameras flashed.
Amid this multitude of flashing cameras and mobile phones, TV journalists and radio microphones, four young teenagers, Heather O’Brien from Kilkenny, Alan Phelan from Waterford, Lucy White from Tipperary and Eoghan French from Wexford moved centre stage.
They would combine to place the milking cluster on the second cow, the first to be milked under the new regime in all of Europe. Abigail began the countdown “14, 13, 12, 11 ... 3, 2, 1.”
By 20 seconds past 12 the first milk of a new age flowed and four very nervous teenagers could at last smile, they had done their part.
It was a night heavy with symbolism, but as Siobhan Talbot and Liam Herlihy headed off into the night they must surely have reflected on the reality, it’s up to us and people like us now.
