Farewell to farmers’ friend

Joe Walsh survived a decade of CAP reforms and foot-and-mouth, writes Agribusiness Correspondent Ray Ryan.

A PRIEST visiting a school a few years ago to examine pupils before the arrival of the bishop to administer Confirmation decided to test the knowledge of the class.

“Tell me now, boys, is there anything that God can’t do,” he asked them, but he was hardly prepared for the quickfire answer that he got.

For one lad indicated there was indeed something which was even beyond the power of the Almighty. “He can’t please the farmers,” he said, with a look of innocence.

Joe Walsh, the longest-serving Minister for Agriculture in the EU, laughed heartily at that story when it was relayed to him a few years ago.

For he had just returned from Brussels, having pleased the powerful Irish farm lobby in tough negotiations on one of the early reforms of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

Mr Walsh, who announced yesterday that he is retiring at the end of next month and will step down as a TD for Cork South West at the next general election, has guided agricultural policy since he was first appointed to the Cabinet in 1992.

His decision highlights a momentous era in the agriculture and food sectors, which has seen radical reforms of the CAP; a dramatic restructuring of the industry as it faces a challenging and competitive future, and threats posed by BSE and foot and mouth.

Farmers did not always agree with some of the policies pursued by the man from Clonakilty, but they always accepted that he understood their industry, worked in its best interest and represented them well in Brussels and elsewhere.

They also enjoyed an unprecedented level of access to him that was not made available to their fellow-farmers by ministers in any other EU member state.

Joe Walsh has been a Fianna Fáil TD for Cork South West since 1977, except for eight months in 1981-1982, most of which he served in the Senate.

He was appointed Minister for Agriculture in 1992, having demonstrated his leadership abilities as Ireland’s first Minister for Food during the previous five years.

BORN IN 1943, the West Cork man was the third of eight children and spent his childhood on the family’s farm. The lessons he learned watching deals being set up and made at Ballineen fair would later serve him well in the wrangling that took place in crucial EU negotiations.

He developed a deep empathy for the independent Irish farmer and the families and rural communities whose livelihood revolve around agriculture. He recognised their contributions to the flourishing economy and worked to secure their future in the EU’s competitive environment. After leaving his local national school, Joe Walsh went to St Finbarr’s College, Farranferris, and later studied dairy science at University College, Cork.

It was there that his interest in agriculture was coupled with an interest in politics and Fianna Fáil. As a student, he founded the party’s first cumann in the campus. It was named after former Education Minister Donagh O’Malley.

He graduated from UCC in 1969 and completed his practical work experience in the Lisavaird Co-op area in West Cork. The experience he gained on the creamery platforms of Kilfinihan, Ballycummer, Manch and Clonakilty channelled him towards a career in creamery management.

However, he began his working career as a researcher in the National Dairy Research Centre at Moorepark, Fermoy. From there he honed his business skills as managing director of Strand Dairies in West Cork.

Still politically active, he was elected to Cork County Council and later as a TD for Cork South West in Fianna Fáil’s landslide general election victory in 1977. His contributions to national debate, particularly on agriculture and food-related issues, resulted in his appointment as Minister for Food in 1987.

He immediately set about reorganising support mechanisms for the development of the food industry which stimulated increased investment, creating opportunities for new processing capacity and enhancing research and development capabilities.

Following a period of unprecedented growth and development in the industry, he was appointed to the critical Government position of Minister for Agriculture and Food in 1992. He was Ireland’s key negotiator in fundamental reforms of the CAP that year and again in the Agenda 2000 process.

The outcomes of these negotiations were acknowledged by farm and agri-business leaders as tailor-made for the agriculture and food sector and the economy in general. Ian Paisley even praised his work on behalf of farmers in the south.

In June 2003, Mr Walsh was Ireland’s negotiator in the most radical reform of the CAP since its inception. This led to his decision on the full decoupling of direct farm payments from production. He was the first EU minister to have made that momentous and courageous decision.

During his tenure at Agriculture House, he has been totally committed to the development of a world-class agri-food industry in Ireland. From a previously fragmented approach to food marketing, he succeeded in 1994 in establishing a single food agency, Bord Bia, dedicated to marketing Irish food and drink throughout the world under the “Ireland - the Food Island” banner. His relationships with the farm lobby was by its nature a roller-coaster one, going from the high acclaim of achievements in European agricultural policy and his handling of the foot-and-mouth crisis to a war of stats over farm income during the IFA tractorcade.

Mr Walsh, the author of booklet histories of patriots Dick Barrett and Liam Lynch, also initiated and became patron of the International Food Forum in Kinsale. Joe Walsh’s calibre as a leader was recognised publicly in 2001 during the foot-and-mouth crisis when his resolute and effective action, cross-Border co-operation and his leadership in mobilising an unparalleled national effort, not only safeguarded Ireland’s e16 billion agri-food industry but ensured that it rapidly regained its prized disease-free status. He was conferred with an honorary doctorate from Saint Joseph’s University, Philadelphia, in 1999, for his strategic vision and commitment towards securing Ireland’s position in the growing European and global market for food and drink.

In 1987, as Minister for Food, he was awarded an honorary fellowship of the Institute of Food Science and Technology. He was inducted into the prestigious West Cork “Hall of Fame” in 1992 for distinguished service to the State, an honour he shares with such previous recipients as John Hume and the late Jack Lynch. For his skilful handling of the foot-and-mouth crisis, he received a citation from the Guild of Agricultural Journalists of Ireland.

In September 2002, he received the highest honour that the French Government can bestow on an individual for public service - an Officer of the Legion of Honour (Legion d’Honneur). He received the award for his role in furthering good relations between France and Ireland.

In February 2003, King Juan Carlos of Spain honoured Mr Walsh with the insignia of the Grand Cross of the Agricultural Order of Merit for distinguished service to agriculture.

Mr Walsh, who played key roles in the development of Cork Racecourse Mallow and Cork Greyhound Stadium at Curraheen, hosted the first meeting of the enlarged European Council of Agricultural Ministers in Killarney last May. Married with five grown-up children, he lives with his wife Marie in Clonakilty.