We are at an inflection point in agricultural policy.

We have seen similar fundamental changes in the past, such as the implementation of dairy quotas, the eligible land for tillage farmers and the 90-head limit in beef, followed by the direct payments system.

Last Monday, Teagasc launched – to use that overused term – its sustainability report for 2024.

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There were a number of key messages which we would be foolish to ignore.

The most graphic was the warning from the organisation’s economic unit that farmers, under the new CAP, are going to increasingly depend on Dublin rather than Brussels.

On EU entry, farming support that was such a feature of the national budget before EU accession was transferred to Brussels.

There is little doubt that the pendulum is going to swing back, the only question is by how much?

It would seem that we are not only talking about direct price and market support, but even environmental standards, we were warned from the specialist Teagasc team, would be variable across member states, in effect replacing the present code of good farming practice.

As a country, Ireland, with both a strong balance of payments and a strong national budgetary position, but with a high dependence on a potentially mobile, multinational sector has some fundamental judgments to make on how farming and food production are to be treated in a changing CAP environment.

We are starting from a strong base in a small number of sectors.

Dairying is the standout enterprise with, at this stage, the largest farms with the highest incomes per acre but with our predominantly family-based structure, the longest working hours – perhaps in many cases too long.

There is little question that we are internationally competitive in milk production, though as we are seeing at the moment that can be undermined by cheap grain.

Our tillage sector is also clearly competitive in European terms, but the Teagasc unit’s work has lagged behind developments in failing to adequately measure how it has slipped in comparison with new, international competitors.

The consequence of this slippage in our tillage competitiveness was graphically illustrated in another presentation which showed the dramatic rise in the number of hours worked off-farm by tillage farmers.

Overall, specialist dairy and tillage farms are feeding 12 to 15 people per hectare and nationally meeting the protein needs of almost 50m consumers – with our red meat being a particularly valuable source.

All of this is being achieved with reducing greenhouse gas emissions and a reducing carbon footprint.

A good record, but lots of challenges ahead – especially over the next few critical years.