The president of the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) Ivor Ferguson has said that the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) should accept the current Brexit deal.

Speaking to RTÉ, Ferguson said: “On behalf of Northern Irish farmers, we’ve always stated that we didn’t want to see a border [check] between the north and south of Ireland or the east and west.”

“We have no option but to support this because it is the best deal on the table.”

It is the best deal on the table

Ferguson also pointed out that trade was utterly vital to farmers in Northern Ireland, stating that 75% of products were exported from the country.

He highlighted concerns farmers had regarding future trade deals that the UK secretary of state for international trade Liam Fox had been trying to deliver with the US, among other countries.

“We know that [secretary] Liam Fox has been trying to do his best to get a deal with the USDA – that’s a big concern for us,” Ferguson said.

If we were faced with tariffs it would be uneconomical

“The thought of cheaper food coming in from America doesn’t sit well with farmers.”

He admitted that the Brexit vote had been split between the 11,500 members in the UFU and that over time some had become disillusioned with certain Brexit promises, and emphasised the potential repercussions for trade in the event of a hard Brexit.

“As time goes on, I think more farmers realised that a lot of the promises that were made about less regulation weren't coming,” he said.

“If we were faced with tariffs it would be uneconomical.”

“Our sheep industry would be completely finished.”

“The chicken industry would have 80% of products going to the UK market but we still need the European market for the remaining 20%.”

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