Person: Farm Commissioner

Commission moves ‘not going far enough’ to help dairy industry

THE latest moves by the European Commission to help the dairy industry were welcome but did not go far enough, according to the Irish Co-operative Organisation Society.

Sat, 21 Mar, 2009

EU to re-activate subsidies for dairy products to help exporters

THE European Union is to re-activate subsidies for a series of dairy products to help struggling exporters compete better on the depressed world market.

Fri, 16 Jan, 2009

Smith discusses end of milk quotas with EU commissioner

IRISH concerns about milk quotas and additional modulation were discussed at a trilateral private meeting in Luxembourg yesterday.

Wed, 29 Oct, 2008

There is no need to completely rewrite the CAP, says Fischer Boel

THE European Union may decide to change direction to some extent, but there is no need for completely rewriting the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

Thu, 25 Sep, 2008

EU pledges to continue developing CAP into policy tool for 21st century

AS the European Union decides the best way forward after the collapse of the world trade talks, it has pledged to continue its domestic work of forging the Common Agricultural Policy into a policy tool for the 21st century.

Fri, 08 Aug, 2008

Farmers say no to market proposal

EUROPEAN farmers have made 50 proposals to slash EU red tape in agriculture, but they have rejected a commission proposal for a single Common Market Organisation (CMO).

Fri, 16 Mar, 2007

Rules on organic food to be updated

EUROPEAN Union updated rules on organic food are expected to be agreed by ministers in June, according to Farm Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel.

Fri, 23 Feb, 2007

Commission sets aside feed rules

IRISH farmers can use the animal feed grown on set-aside land before the usual deadline, the European Commission has decided.

Sat, 12 Aug, 2006

WTO negotiations a concern for beef

GRAVE concern that EU concessions in the WTO negotiations would decimate the Irish beef industry was conveyed to Farm Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel by IFA president Padraig Walshe in Brussels.

Sat, 17 Jun, 2006

Brussels subsidy plans not good for Goodman

A COMPANY belonging to the beef baron Larry Goodman stands to lose about €200,000 a year in farm subsidies under plans being drawn up in Brussels.

Thu, 08 Jun, 2006

State urged to support meat industry

THE Government has been urged to ensure the future of the country’s beef industry is defended and not sacrificed in European Union attempts to reach a new world trade deal.

Fri, 02 Jun, 2006

‘No future’ in sugar beet, IFA hears

AN emergency meeting of the Irish Farmers Association’s national sugar beet committee in Dublin yesterday unanimously concluded that beet production in Ireland has ended.

Sat, 26 Nov, 2005

IFA to stage sugar protest

AN urgent SOS message will be issued to the European Union and the Government at a public protest in Mallow, Co Cork, tomorrow afternoon - ‘Save Our Sugar’.

Sat, 19 Nov, 2005

Beet growers to stage protest over cuts

BEET growers and their families take to the streets next month to defend the Irish sugar industry from radical reforms proposed by the European Commission.

Sat, 29 Oct, 2005

EC holds firm on sugar reforms

THE European Commission held firmly to its radical sugar reform proposals at a Council of Agricultural Ministers meeting in Luxembourg yesterday, but a blocking minority of 10 countries increased to 11 with Poland joining the ranks of member states opposed to the moves.

Wed, 26 Oct, 2005

Mandelson: 'Don't panic over talks'

The European Union’s top trade negotiator won overwhelming support from EU governments today to stay the course in world trade talks, and he urged member nations not to lose their nerve.

Tue, 18 Oct, 2005

EU urged to reveal sugar plans

THE sugar processing industry in Ireland must now be given a clear indication of how the European Commission plans to deal with the sector, MEP Mairead McGuinness said yesterday.

Wed, 04 May, 2005

Revised EU sugar reforms are still a threat to Ireland

REVISED proposals to reform the European Union’s sugar regime, which will be published on June 22, could still pose a serious threat to the future viability of the industry in Ireland, despite recent restructuring.

Mon, 02 May, 2005

Sugar reforms are a matter of simple justice

THE Unites States did the World Trade Organisation’s quest for subsidy-free and open markets no favours when it put import tariffs on imported steel to protect jobs in its own backyard.

Wed, 28 Jul, 2004

Export refunds plan angers leaders

THE offer by the European Union to end agricultural export refunds as long as nations, including the United States, promise to cut farm grants and lower import tariffs, has been given a hostile reception by Irish agri-leaders.

Thu, 13 May, 2004

Adoption of REPS proposals delayed

Ireland: The formal adoption of Ireland's proposals for a new Rural Environment Protection Scheme (REPS) has been delayed by the European Agricultural Structures (STAR) Committee.

Thu, 13 May, 2004