Farmer views: pig farmers hit out at slurry movement rules
The four-day rule for slurry movement came into effect from 1 January 2025 and mandates that farmers must declare organic manure exports to the Department within four days of the movement occurring.
“The four-day [slurry movement] rule from a pig farmer’s point of view is absolutely unworkable. With the situation on most pig farms, labour is tight, you’re depending on your contractor in a lot of cases.
“We want a workable solution that works in everyone’s best interest. We all have the same view for better water quality and better use of nutrients. We also think that the grants for slurry storage should be increased substantially, so that more of those valuable resources can be utilised at the optimum time.”
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Tom Hogan.
Paul Tully
“We’ve always said that the four-day rule wasn’t suitable by the nature of farmers and by the nature of the people who take our manure. Quite a few of them don’t even have access to Agfood, they don’t know how to use a laptop or an app and that whole piece has been ignored.
“I have a lot of people who take my manure that have to pay consultants to do it. When I give them the full lowdown of the new rules – I see nothing but layers of disincentive for people to take part in the circular economy.”
Paul Tully.
Frank Brady
“It’s disappointing in a room like this that we have no processors here today. I think pig prices are as big a challenge to us going forward as nitrates or getting our slurry out because if we don’t have pigs we won’t have slurry to get out.
“It’s disappointing that they’re [processors] are all very busy given than price has come down by 32c in the last six weeks. If you talk to anyone [in the industry] they say we can’t make money. I don’t see any future for pig farming with the way it’s going at the minute.”
Frank Brady.
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Title: Farmer views: pig farmers hit out at slurry movement rules
The four-day rule for slurry movement came into effect from 1 January 2025 and mandates that farmers must declare organic manure exports to the Department within four days of the movement occurring.
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Tom Hogan
“The four-day [slurry movement] rule from a pig farmer’s point of view is absolutely unworkable. With the situation on most pig farms, labour is tight, you’re depending on your contractor in a lot of cases.
“We want a workable solution that works in everyone’s best interest. We all have the same view for better water quality and better use of nutrients. We also think that the grants for slurry storage should be increased substantially, so that more of those valuable resources can be utilised at the optimum time.”
Tom Hogan.
Paul Tully
“We’ve always said that the four-day rule wasn’t suitable by the nature of farmers and by the nature of the people who take our manure. Quite a few of them don’t even have access to Agfood, they don’t know how to use a laptop or an app and that whole piece has been ignored.
“I have a lot of people who take my manure that have to pay consultants to do it. When I give them the full lowdown of the new rules – I see nothing but layers of disincentive for people to take part in the circular economy.”
Paul Tully.
Frank Brady
“It’s disappointing in a room like this that we have no processors here today. I think pig prices are as big a challenge to us going forward as nitrates or getting our slurry out because if we don’t have pigs we won’t have slurry to get out.
“It’s disappointing that they’re [processors] are all very busy given than price has come down by 32c in the last six weeks. If you talk to anyone [in the industry] they say we can’t make money. I don’t see any future for pig farming with the way it’s going at the minute.”
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