The ICSA celebrated 25 years representing drystock farmers last Friday at a celebration dinner.

European Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan and Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed were both present for the celebrations, which highlighted the ICSA’s early advocacy of decoupled payments, which were the cornerstone of the Fischler reforms, as a key achievement.

Presentations were made to the first three presidents – Jimmy Cosgrave, Charlie Reilly and Albert Thompson – as well as to Pat Lawlor, the first secretary. Two founder members, Dermot Kelleher from west Cork and Austin Stevenson from Donegal, were recognised for their outstanding contributions.

Fodder challenge

Prior to the dinner, workshops were held focusing on the fodder challenge and on mental wellbeing in farming. The pressures placed on drystock farmers were a recurring theme of the night, with Seamus Sherlock saying “farmers are working themselves into oblivion”. A fodder crisis family support scheme, drawn directly from membership fees, was announced.

Sustainability was a dominant theme. Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, Patrick Kent said: “I am afraid that we are following the New Zealand model to its ultimate conclusion and I am deeply worried about the consequences for our farmers.

“I don’t want a future for our farmers modelled on huge scale, totally dependent on a merry-go-round of imported labour that is getting harder to source, totally dependent on a nitrates derogation, dependent on imported fodder and feed, dependent on no health or stress setbacks for the farmers and their families, dependent on large borrowings, and totally dependent on costings that treat the farmer’s own labour and own land as valueless.

More work

“I am afraid we are driving our farmers to work harder and harder for less and less so that retailers can sell our products cheaper and cheaper.

“I want to see this cycle broken because I have already seen its impact on our livestock sectors.

“I passionately believe that we have to ensure that Origin Green and grass-fed systems stack up as being the most sustainable in the world and that we can demand a premium price for grass-fed systems. The New Zealand system is not sustainable in any sense in Irish or EU conditions.”