Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed has ordered Teagasc to assess what fodder stocks are available for sale in the south of the country.

The Minister said he had convened the first meeting of the fodder action group on Monday. The group included representatives of the feed industry, co-ops, banking and farm bodies on Monday, chaired by Teagasc.

“Arising from the meeting, Teagasc is committed to assessing fodder availability in the south of the country to ascertain what supplies are still available for purchase,” he told Donegal independent TD Thomas Pringle in the Dáil.

“Exploring these avenues means my Department will be fully informed of the situation on the ground and the best possible advice will be provided to farmers regarding their options.”

It follows a Teagasc survey this week, which revealed that 85% of farmers in the northwest are short of fodder this winter.

Farm organisations are growing increasingly impatient by the lack of concrete action by the Department to help farmers worst affected by fodder shortages.

Read more

Fodder issues: what you can do to address the problem

Hundreds of bales of silage and hay donated

Meal might be better value than poor forage