Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) livestock chair Brendan Golden has called for Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue to “come forward immediately” with a financial package for suckler farmers and cattle finishers facing increased farm input costs.
He claimed this package should come from a €48m fund available to all Irish farmers which is made up of the approximately €16m Ireland has received as part of the €500m farmer support package announced by the European Commission last week and an additional €32m which the Irish Government is permitted to add on.
Golden said the package for beef farmers should also include the €40m “clawed back” from BEAM scheme payments, money Minister McConalogue declined to account for when asked by the Irish Farmers Journal earlier this month.
He said such a beef package would allow key breeding and management decisions be taken by beef farmers now that will maintain Ireland’s “supply chain of the highest quality beef in this critical time of food insecurity”.
Next three years
Golden said that without such a package of financial aid, the rising input costs currently impacting beef and suckler farmers will impact the supply of beef for the next three years.
He said now is the “critical time of year” where beef farmers are making decisions on whether or not to breed cattle.
The uncertainty around availability and costs of inputs such as feed, fertiliser and fuel will play a huge role
“These decisions require a commitment from the suckler farmer to maintain the cow until she has reared the calf to weaning in the back end of 2023, which is 18 months away. The uncertainty around availability and costs of inputs such as feed, fertiliser and fuel will play a huge role in this decision making.”
No signs of abating
Golden warned that the beef sector “does not have the capacity to absorb the level of cost increases across all the key inputs that show no signs of abating”.
Suckler farmers need financial supports to avoid a drop in cow numbers, says the IFA. \ Philip Doyle
He said the sector must be supported directly as a matter of urgency to allow farmers plan the breeding season with confidence and to ensure Ireland does not lose any more “critical mass” in suckler cow numbers from the country.
“The lack of confidence in beef finishers for later this year and into next year is clearly evident in mart sales of lighter animals over the past two weeks. Prices for lighter stores have dropped as finishers react to the increased production costs and uncertainty for the year ahead.”
Contracted prices
The IFA livestock chair also called for contracted or guaranteed prices from beef factories for autumn 2022 and spring 2023.
However, he suggested that Irish beef farming and its grass-based system are less exposed than those elsewhere in Europe with more grain intensive beef feeding regimes.
He said these farmers “are more exposed on grain shortages”.
Golden made the remark following a meeting of the COPA-COGECA beef and veal group where beef farmers from all European Union member states shared an update on how input costs and supply challenges are impacting their businesses.
The Mayo man said the failure of EU policy in providing food security for the citizens of the EU and to support farmers in producing this food has been laid bare in this recent crisis.
Read more
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Rising sheep prices not keeping ‘pace’ with costs – IFA
Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) livestock chair Brendan Golden has called for Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue to “come forward immediately” with a financial package for suckler farmers and cattle finishers facing increased farm input costs.
He claimed this package should come from a €48m fund available to all Irish farmers which is made up of the approximately €16m Ireland has received as part of the €500m farmer support package announced by the European Commission last week and an additional €32m which the Irish Government is permitted to add on.
Golden said the package for beef farmers should also include the €40m “clawed back” from BEAM scheme payments, money Minister McConalogue declined to account for when asked by the Irish Farmers Journal earlier this month.
He said such a beef package would allow key breeding and management decisions be taken by beef farmers now that will maintain Ireland’s “supply chain of the highest quality beef in this critical time of food insecurity”.
Next three years
Golden said that without such a package of financial aid, the rising input costs currently impacting beef and suckler farmers will impact the supply of beef for the next three years.
He said now is the “critical time of year” where beef farmers are making decisions on whether or not to breed cattle.
The uncertainty around availability and costs of inputs such as feed, fertiliser and fuel will play a huge role
“These decisions require a commitment from the suckler farmer to maintain the cow until she has reared the calf to weaning in the back end of 2023, which is 18 months away. The uncertainty around availability and costs of inputs such as feed, fertiliser and fuel will play a huge role in this decision making.”
No signs of abating
Golden warned that the beef sector “does not have the capacity to absorb the level of cost increases across all the key inputs that show no signs of abating”.
Suckler farmers need financial supports to avoid a drop in cow numbers, says the IFA. \ Philip Doyle
He said the sector must be supported directly as a matter of urgency to allow farmers plan the breeding season with confidence and to ensure Ireland does not lose any more “critical mass” in suckler cow numbers from the country.
“The lack of confidence in beef finishers for later this year and into next year is clearly evident in mart sales of lighter animals over the past two weeks. Prices for lighter stores have dropped as finishers react to the increased production costs and uncertainty for the year ahead.”
Contracted prices
The IFA livestock chair also called for contracted or guaranteed prices from beef factories for autumn 2022 and spring 2023.
However, he suggested that Irish beef farming and its grass-based system are less exposed than those elsewhere in Europe with more grain intensive beef feeding regimes.
He said these farmers “are more exposed on grain shortages”.
Golden made the remark following a meeting of the COPA-COGECA beef and veal group where beef farmers from all European Union member states shared an update on how input costs and supply challenges are impacting their businesses.
The Mayo man said the failure of EU policy in providing food security for the citizens of the EU and to support farmers in producing this food has been laid bare in this recent crisis.
Read more
Two-thirds of beef farmers set to offload stock
Rising sheep prices not keeping ‘pace’ with costs – IFA
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