Creed’s ‘one more acre under the plough’ plea
Imports alone will not solve the fodder problem, warned Agriculture Minister Michael Creed last week.
“Even if we commandeered all the trucks and boats, we could not import enough, if we were at it flat out from now until May Day next year,” he told a Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine debate.
“That is, even if the volume of fodder needed was available, and there are issues around its availability.”
Instead, he said, home-grown fodder will be needed. “The real solution, in so far as there is a solution to be had, is to use every available opportunity between now and the end of the growing season, whether by availing of our tillage initiative or our low-income permanent pasture concessions in the context of GLAS participation.”
Mr Creed said the €4.25 million set aside towards transport of imported fodder could stretch to 85,000 tonnes of fodder, compared to the 16,000-18,000 tonnes imported in the spring.
He said he was not hearing anything alarming at this stage in terms of the capacity to source imported fodder.
About 17 importers are approved in the Department’s €4.25m scheme, and about 40,000 tonnes has already been identified by some of the key players.
“Some is already in the country, and options have been taken elsewhere,” said Mr Creed.
“Our support is approximately €50 per tonne on imports. My understanding is that the destinations are substantially France, Spain and Italy, for alfalfa primarily.”
“We are anticipating a substantial ratcheting up of the volume imported, although it is nowhere near meeting the shortfall.
“The resolution to the shortfall is still, substantially, in our own hands and in what we can conserve between now and the end of the year.”
He said the 270,000 ha liberated from the normal GLAS regulations for low-input permanent pasture between now and December offer significant potential in conserving fodder.
The target under a tillage initiative is 25,000 ha. “There is a strong take-up from the seed houses and, in fact, they estimate that they have sold seed equivalent to a lot more than 25,000 ha in recent weeks,” said the Minister.
Whether it is sooner or later, we must maximise every opportunity through the tillage scheme, farmers getting a second and, where possible, third cut, and GLAS concessions. GLAS may not be an opportunity for oneself, but it may be for one’s neighbour or someone else
He anticipated much of the resulting fodder migrating from around the country towards the south east.
He noted that many of the participants who will benefit from relaxation of GLAS regulations are in the areas of the country not as challenged by drought as the south and south east.
“There was a maxim during the economic war or the Second World War that there would be one more cow, one more sow, one more acre under the plough.
“Farmers in certain areas may have sufficient fodder for themselves, but they should use every opportunity between now and the end of the growing season to conserve as much fodder as possible because there will be a domestic market for it.”
