New restrictions introduced by the Department of Agriculture on farm-to-farm cattle movements could damage the calf trade, according to IFA president Joe Healy.

"We need to see a doubling of numbers exported and so should be removing obstacles, not adding to them," he said

"The new 10-day rule is over restrictive. While the majority of calves sold are over 10 days of age, the Department must facilitate the movement of young calves to farms where a replacement calf is needed for a suckler cow."

Healy also expressed concern about the shortening of the validity period of farm-to-farm compliance certificate and the requirement to identify the destination herd.

"This will impact on the functioning of the market, especially for farmers who are reliant on the paper-based system," he said.