Pictures: Farmers in good spirits at Tullamore Show
Mark Keegan, Sean Nash, and Joe Ward from Longford at the Tullamore Show on Sunday. Picture: Alf Harvey
More than 60,000 people attended the Tullamore Show and FBD National Livestock Show — the largest one-day agricultural event in the country — which took place on the 250-acre Butterfield Estate in Blue Ball, Co Offaly, on Sunday.
Warm dry weather conditions prevailed for the day, and farmers in attendance were in good form, bolstered by strong farm gate prices, favourable weather conditions and good grass growth.
However, IFA president Francie Gorman said while people were upbeat, there were still concerns among farmers. “CAP remains absolutely pivotal to the future of Irish livestock farming, which is why the proposed CAP reforms announced by the EU Commission last month cannot be allowed to become reality”, he said.
"Their efforts stretch well beyond the farm gate through the processing sector and onto our export profile. Any reduction in the CAP budget would have reverberations through the rural economy,” he said.
The IFA president said the Government would have to lead a sustained and determined diplomatic push in Brussels to re-centre the debate around food production and the twin-pillar approach.
The show was officially opened by Tánaiste Simon Harris, who acknowledged the significant contribution agriculture makes to life in Ireland: “In good times and in bad times, agriculture and farming keep this country going, keep the economy going and provide jobs and employment in every community across Ireland”.
“We cannot lose sight of the fact that agriculture is not a nice to have, it's not a nice to do. It’s not nice to support agriculture; it’s not a useful thing to do, but it’s absolutely essential.
The Fine Gael leader said the Government “must back farming, back it to the hilt”.
The Tánaiste said there were three big pieces of work to be done at European level. "There's CAP, there's Mercosur and, of course, there's a nitrates derogation," he said.
"In the weeks ahead, we will be continuing to build alliances at a European level to make sure that any future EU budget has a well-funded and ring-fenced Common Agricultural Policy”.
The FBD National Livestock Show is one of the main attractions of the show, with the prizes competed for by the very best livestock producers in Ireland vying for the many national titles and the coveted gold medals on offer.
The sheep section hosted the largest number of classes, with every sheep breed on show, according to organisers, with a new class this year for Valais Blacknose.
The commercial cattle section of this year’s show saw increased entries once again, with Mayo man Kevin Devine’s outstanding heifer Ruby tapped out as overall senior champion.
The Sustainable Livestock Village returned to the show this year, with a strong emphasis placed on the role of young farmers in delivering sustainable change. Macra joined the village for the first time to highlight generation renewal and youth-led innovation.
The 'village' was officially launched by MEP Barry Cowen, and was powered by a hydrogen unit, the first ever at a show in Ireland, according to organisers.
