Sheep farmers protest outside Leinster House demanding financial assistance from Government

Tue, 28 Feb, 2023 - 17:04

Ronan Smyth

Sheep farmers are not ruling out protesting outside meat processing factories as they took to the streets outside of Leinster House to demand financial assistance from the Government.

The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA) are looking for a support package of €50 million for sheep farmers to be funded through the Brexit Reserve Fund with the sector struggling due to the impacts of Brexit. They are also calling for an increase in the Sheep Improvement Scheme closer to €30 per ewe and an extra €5 per ewe for wool.

The current rate under the scheme is €12 per ewe with the scheme running until the end of this year - up from €10 last year.

Sean McNamara, the sheep chairman with the ICSA, said they “weren’t happy with it at all” and that there is “no viable income out of sheep farming anymore”.

“The Department official [said] that we'll get a 20% increase in our sheep welfare which is €2 and we should be happy with that. You know what €2 will do, nothing.”

Mr McNamara said farmers are currently getting €6.20 per kg for their lamb when last year they were getting €7.50 per kg.

He said that to cover the cost of production alone, farmers would need to get €7.30 per kg.

General Secretary of the ICSA Eddie Punch said every sector has its challenges due to high costs but other sectors like beef and diary have seen their prices improved.

“The sheep sector has gone in the opposite direction. We have the appalling scenario now Teagasc figures show a ewe makes €7 profit.”

Mr Punch said that farmers need to be making closer to €8 per kg to make the sector viable.

When asked yesterday if the ICSA will be protesting meat processing factories in light of the low amount of money being offered per kg, Mr Punch said “nothing is off the table”.

“We decided to come here first because we think there is a long standing sense of grievance among sheep farmers that they got a bad deal,” he said.

ICSA President Dermot Kelleher said they will “probably” protest the meat factories “in time” but they were out yesterday because the “sheep sector is in serious trouble”.

"Sheep are worth less this year than they were two years ago and their costs have gone up 200%/300%. If nothing changes it is all over,” he said.

Mr Kelleher said the protest was about the “very survival of the sheep sector”.

“These are the people who despite working seven days a week to put food on your table are experiencing severe financial hardship; they urgently need to be thrown an economic lifeline – not thrown to the wolves."

“Brexit brought untold turmoil to the sheep sector and the ramifications are still being felt to this day,” Mr McNamara said, pointing to New Zealand lamb imports into the UK as well as the weakness of the Sterling.

“The purpose of the Brexit Reserve Fund is to mitigate the negative effects of Brexit and we can see no reason for those monies to go unspent - and be returned to Brussels - when sheep farmers are in such dire straits. This Government needs to do the right thing by accessing this fund and supporting sheep farmers.

“The bottom line is we are not getting an adequate price for our product, nor are we in receipt of enough government support. Both of these issues must be tackled in order to save the sheep sector,” he said.

Kildare-based farmer Fergal Byrne said he bought some sheep last year at €100 a piece and has since spent €35 on meal for them.

“If I brought them out to sell them at this stage, the most that will come in is €135 maybe €140,” he said.

Mr Byrne said farmers feel that the Government’s CAP Strategic Plan 2023 - 2027 “completely underestimated the challenges facing the sheep sector”.

He said sheep farming has been impacted hard by Brexit and as such they are asking the Government for support through the Brexit Reserve Fund.

North Dublin-based farmer Glen Keogh said it has been “a struggle” and it “we’ve never really got support” “It doesn't look like we're going against somebody and why I don't know.

"We hope that there's brighter days ahead,” he said, adding that if the Government don’t do something the sheep farming tradition “is going to die”.

"The older generation like me, which is tradition, will last longer than the younger guy that just got into last year who poured a lot of money in and can't meet his payments. He's wiped out.

"They'll try and hold on for better days but it's inevitable if it continues the way it is what's gonna happen. We're wiped out,” he said.

Donncha Creed, a sheep farmer from west Cork, works another job so that he can keep his farm of 132 ewes going.

"A lot of sheep farmers are selling sheep, getting rid of sheep, cutting back in numbers. If I'm going to stay pumping money out of my own pocket into farming trying to keep it going just to put food on other people's tables, I'll just have to walk away from it,” he said.