Barryroe Co-op chair and Cork dairy farmer Peter Fleming has been elected as the new chair of the ICOS dairy committee.

He succeeds Jerry Long, who was elevated to the position of ICOS president in June.

Fleming, who farms in Timoleague, Co Cork, has been chair of Barryroe since 2012 and served as the chair of Carbery most recently. He is also a member of the board of Ornua.

He previously served as chair of the Munster Cattle Breeding Group from 2016 to 2017 and as a board member of ICBF, while he currently sits on the board of Shinagh Estates.

Policy positions

The ICOS dairy committee is responsible for the formulation of policy positions within ICOS affecting the Irish dairy sector.

“The dairy sector is a very vibrant and valuable contributor to the Irish and rural economy,” said Fleming. “However, it is facing a number of key challenges relating to the environment, the prospect of a no-deal Brexit, income volatility, CAP reform and access to skilled labour.”

However, he added that he was very confident that the Irish dairy sector, underpinned by the co-operative model, could help milk suppliers and farm families to respond positively to those challenges.