There was a subdued mood at a conference organised by the SDLP on the implications of Brexit in Cookstown on Thursday, with speakers displaying little confidence that the UK government would prioritise a withdrawal agreement from the EU that would benefit NI farmers.

“The UK government have never supported agri food in 40 years. The likelihood of them supporting it in the future is interesting, certainly not reliable,” chair of Agri Food Strategy Board Tony O’Neill said during his address.

He said that it was critical that the agenda from the agri-food sector in NI was well understood and argued at the negotiation table by UK politicians and that time and effort is invested in advisory groups and lobbying to get this across to negotiators.

O’Neill said that agri food could be put in the “too difficult box” as it has various sub sectors which make it complicated and other industries in the UK, such as financial services and manufacturing, would take priority in trade deal negotiations.

Long withdrawal

There was a general consensus from all speakers that the withdrawal negotiations would take longer than the minimum period of two years from the triggering of Article 50. Economist Leslie Budd said that this would be closer to ten years.

In her address, IFA chief economist Rowena Dwyer said that although there was a risk to UK and Irish farmers that a liberal trade could allow cheap imports of food to the UK, this would not take place quickly. She said that all trade deals take long periods of time to negotiate and that negotiations could not start until the UK leaves the EU.

Dwyer said that NI farmers have to take two main points to the UK government. The first is to have financial support to farmers as strong as possible and to be able to allow a different system for NI compared to Britain. “The second point is to have a trading relationship with the EU that is as free as possible, particularly with a shared land border with the Republic of Ireland,” she said.

Opportunities

Some opportunities from the Brexit vote were mentioned. Speakers said that a food self-sufficiency rate of 60% in a growing population of 64m at present in the UK presented a market opportunity to farmers in NI if it is protected.

Tony O’Neill said that the UK government has to seriously consider food security during the Brexit process. He pointed out that cheap food exporting countries could eventually reduce exports to the UK to feed their own growing populations or decide to trade elsewhere.

O’Neill added that trade deals and agricultural policy post-Brexit could increase production efficiency in the NI farming industry and lead to restructuring. “I believe that we will be better after this. The issue will be the ten years that it will take to get there,” he said.