Pat Farrell, Co Laois

DEAR SIR: I would like to congratulate your paper on highlighting the different levies that we as farmers pay. The levies give different levels of return for farmers and they certainly put the EIF levy into perspective.

As national commodity chair within IFA, I have negotiated on behalf of farmers with two different Ministers for Agriculture and Environment. IFA has certainly come a long way from the time when the government of the day refused to meet them. I have seen numerous achievements which would not have happened without a strong and vibrant organisation to represent farmers.

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The levy paid on sales is paid on a person’s production and while it may not be a perfect system, I have yet to hear a better system proposed.

Like everyone else I too am saddened and dismayed at the events of last November. We owe it to the people who started IFA and continued the organisation over the years to have a strong and vibrant organisation to defend farmers’ interests. It would be very easy to throw the baby out with the bathwater.