The IFA has been fighting a strong campaign seeking support for tillage farmers who effectively saw their income wiped out due to poor weather conditions at harvest.

The association’s crop loss survey, submitted to Minister Creed this week, indicates 212 farmers each lost on average of 105/t of grain and 330 round bales of straw. This comes in a year when Teagasc figures predict that the average tillage farmer will return a negative net margin of €130/h. While the number of farmers is small, this should not distract from the need for support.

Call for support

The tillage sector has a legitimate claim in its call for support from Brussels and national government. Any response from Brussels will be longer term and more strategic; unlikely to deliver support in time to help the cohort of farmers impacted by severe crop losses.

However Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed does have flexibility under recently revised state aid rules to quickly design a targeted package to support these farmers. It is a real opportunity for Government to show commitment to the sector.