Farmers’ hopes raised by help from department and co-ops

Farmers have welcomed the commitment by dairy co-ops and the Department of Agriculture to substantially increase the volume of fodder imports over the short-to-medium term.

The co-ops have also agreed to consider the introduction of interest-free credit, within limits, to farmers to buy fertiliser, limited to the month of May.

Viewed in tandem with the department’s €1m fund towards transport costs for imported fodder, farmers are becoming more hopeful about their situation. “These efforts will help thousands of farmers through this difficult time,” said Macra president Alan Jagoe. “The banks, co-ops, and merchants must work with farmers. We must avoid any tragedies as farmers are struggling to cope with the ongoing fodder shortage.

“For a while, we were wondering if anyone other than farmers could see the scale of this crisis. Thankfully, we now believe the Government and others have seen what is going on.”

ICOS chief executive Seamus O’Donohoe also welcomed the efforts towards a cohesive response being made by the department, the co-ops, and the marts.

Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney said the scheme will reduce fodder costs by one third. He also cited emergency assistance available under the Farm Animal Welfare Advisory Council’s early warning system.

The department is also fast-tracking outstanding farm scheme payments, 700 of which were paid last week.

Mr Coveney said he will continue to work with all stakeholders to get through the current difficult period.

“We have copper-fastened a comprehensive package of measures to address the fodder shortage both immediate and longer term.

“There is no reason why any animal on any farm should starve. Support is there for anyone who is facing an emergency situation and I would urge farmers who need support to contact the department for assistance.”

He said the advisory service is prioritising advice to farmers and focusing on optimum use of fertiliser to generate feed for the national herd. He is also meeting the banks to discuss credit facilities for farmers.

Cork-based agri consultants Brady Group are advising farmers not to panic and to talk to their neighbours and friends, advisers, co-ops, merchants, banks, and farm organisations.

The company said: “We sent 500 text messages to our clients last week looking for fodder, and we only got a reply from one client with straw. We got plenty of replies though from people looking for fodder. We are advising clients to feed concentrate heavily with whatever fodder they have.”

In terms of planning for 2014, dairy farmer Tom Browne says farmers will need to revise how well their stocking levels match their quality and size of their own land.

“People are clearly not getting the best of advice,” said Mr Browne, whose 1,000-cow farm in Killeagh, Co Cork, is one of the biggest dairy operations in the country. “There is no miracle to this. In Ireland, we get bad weather at least once every seven or eight years so you must always keep a stock of land in reserve, or you risk having to buy in costly fodder.”

He said his neighbours in East Cork can usually leave cows out in January but cautioned farmers in regions with heavy, wet, land to reduce their stocking levels per acre.

“It is madness to increase your stock without the space. If you can’t get adequate land, you must reduce your numbers. A lot of the dairy sector growth forecasting that is being done at present is off the wall. Stocking rates are starting to be a big problem.”

* Given the scale of the crisis, the Irish Examiner is offering free adverts for farmers offering ‘feed for sale’. Contact 021 4274455 / [e-mail]