DEAR SIR:

Like many of your readers, my first glance at the Irish Farmers Journal usually involves a quick read of the snippets written by The Dealer. Last week (2 December issue), I was surprised and disappointed at the very personalised attack on a Glanbia executive, Sean Molloy, guest speaker at the Teagasc Dairy Conference.

As a former board member of Glanbia, I was never of the view that the biggest milk buyer in the State should expect to get an easy ride from the farming press. I have, however, always admired the Irish Farmers Journal for two things: its former logo “Fearlessly on the farmers’ side” and, for decades, calling for new thinking and innovation in the dairy industry.

Yet The Dealer unfairly attacks, in a low tabloid fashion, the very man who has made a huge and positive difference to dairy farmers’ fortunes.

He has led the way globally in the development of fixed milk price schemes which have been hugely beneficial to Irish farmers in volatile dairy markets.

His work on the Milk Flex loan scheme has brought much needed competition to the Irish banking sector. Ironically, on the same day as the article was published, Sean Molloy’s pioneering work was recognised in Brussels when Glanbia Co-op’s Milk Flex product won an EU award for business innovation. I believe that the Irish Farmers Journal owes Sean Molloy an apology.