The National Ploughing Championships have once again proved an excellent platform for showcasing the importance of rural Ireland to the Irish economy.

Anna May McHugh and her team can take great pride in delivering what is widely recognised as one of the most successful and professionally organised outdoor agricultural events in Europe.

The three days at the Ploughing always serve as an excellent opportunity to gauge the health of the sector.

We hope that Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed and his political colleagues listened to the farmers they met in Offaly and did not get caught up in the hype that surrounds such a large-scale event.

Those who listened should return to Dublin – or indeed Brussels – under no illusions: if the status quo is maintained, the profile of Irish agriculture will change dramatically over the next decade.

We should not gloss over the fact that the suckler and tillage sectors – which between them account for over 70% of farmers – face very challenging futures.

Both sectors have seen a huge erosion in the relative price they receive for their output.

A farmer visiting the Irish Farmers Journal stand made a simple but stark comment: the number of weanlings he is required to sell to purchase a new tractor has doubled in the last 20 years.

It was tillage and suckler farmers who carried the cost of the redistribution of payments in the previous reform

The trend has been even more stark for tillage farmers, to the extent that much of the new machinery lined up along the 32km of steel roadways stretching throughout the Ploughing is now out of financial reach.

It is a trend that has not gone unnoticed by President Michael D Higgins ,who officially opened the Ploughing on Tuesday.

In what was a very well crafted speech, President Higgins identified the hardship facing farmers as a result of falling prices. He rightly highlighted the need for robust policies and good planning to protect “farming life” and in maintaining vibrant communities across rural Ireland.

Dictating the future

Ultimately, the future direction of tillage and suckling depends on the Government’s commitment to recognising the economic return to the wider society from investing in polices that protect vulnerable sectors.

Support can come from two channels: through CAP and/or Exchequer funds.

The upcoming CAP reform offers an opportunity to refocus support towards both sectors.

With a potential reduction in the CAP budget on the cards, such a move would require political courage – both at government level and within farm organisations.

However, it has to be recognised that, in the main, it was tillage and suckler farmers who carried the cost of the redistribution of payments in the previous reform, while the suckler sector has borne the brunt of reduced supports from the Government in the wake of the economic collapse.

Speaking at our breakfast briefing at the Ploughing on Wednesday, Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed recognised the fact that targeted supports would have to form a bigger part of the next CAP.

The decision to do nothing is a decision to let both sectors slowly wither away.

If this is the choice of Government and industry leaders, it is important that the consequences for an industry generating €25bn in exports and supporting over 170,000 jobs throughout rural Ireland are fully established and communicated to all stakeholders.

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Listen: suckler and tillage income washing away