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During the last week, I attended three very different agri-related meetings. The mood and type of farmer present were very different at all three, but all three were representative of the Irish agri sector at the present time.
The first was the IFAC/Bank of Ireland seminar in Nenagh, focusing on investment, developing and taxation. As far as I could judge, the majority of those present were dairy farmers or potential dairy farmers and for a traditionally very strong tillage area, the absence of any discussion about crops was striking. As one farmer said to me on the way out, once sugar beet disappeared, then the high value crop that competed with good dairying and underpinned rotations, left the whole tillage sector exposed.
My take-home message was that the Minister’s request for €100m Brexit-related emergency aid has gone into Brussels and presumably
The second was the enormous Irish Farmers Journal Beef Summit in Ballinasloe, at which the Minister spoke of the unprecedented “flatlining” of prices between October and April. With all facets of the industry and well over 1,300 farmers, my take-home message was that the Minister’s request for €100m Brexit-related emergency aid has gone into Brussels and presumably, most of that will eventually be forthcoming. At this stage, there are only about 17,000 dairy farmers in the country versus 75,000-80,000 cattle farmers, so the regional importance of the beef sector is probably more important than ever. It’s not that long ago that there were over 75,000 Irish farms with dairy cows on them. But underneath all the promising outlook was a sense of real problems after a winter of heavy losses and a stark reduction in family wellbeing.
Hotels have been sold off and the Fairfax Group from Canada put in €70m as well as negotiating the option to take up 20% of the shares
The third gathering was the FBD AGM. The publicly quoted insurance company has been through a few traumatic years. Hotels have been sold off and the Fairfax Group from Canada put in €70m as well as negotiating the option to take up 20% of the shares. But the group is now in much calmer waters, to put it at its mildest. Last year, the company reported a €50m profit and this year, the same figure was reported though this was after an exceptional €12m one-off buyout of the Fairfax interest so, on a like-for-like basis, the profit is €62m.
The meeting was packed. I had never seen, even at the height of the problems, so many shareholders and the vast bulk of the comments were congratulatory rather than critical.
I didn’t realise that FBD was the only insurance company insuring livestock marts
But then, with a doubling of the dividend and an assurance of it remaining as predominantly a farmers’ company, though with prudent urban growth aspirations, the sense of relief was understandable.
I didn’t realise that FBD was the only insurance company insuring livestock marts, which are being covered, though at a loss. I had sympathy with the suggestion of the emergence of a virulent claims culture which is affecting so many small businesses.
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