Paul Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses and thank them for their presentation. As has been stated by every previous speaker, it is hard to argue against the positives of the scheme but we are hearing the positives from one side of the fence and we are duty-bound to represent all interested parties. We have had a bit of lobbying from the farm side and points have been made about the cost.

I would like the witnesses from the Department and Meat Industry Ireland to flesh out a few different items. They have been covered to some extent already, but I would still like to hear them being fleshed out a little more. I am not an expert when it comes to sheep or sheep breeding, but improved traceability has been mentioned. How will the introduction of EID help or improve genomics or genetics? Leaving aside the purebred breeders who will do things a hell of a lot differently from the average sheep farmer, I will use the example of combined flocks running on commonage on a mountain. There is a variety of rams of different breeds. Even on lowland farms breeders run their ewes with a ram or two and then, three weeks later, will run them with another ram. I know from experience of old, and from hearing different stories, a badly doctored wether can do as much damage as a ram on any farm. Unless we start recording the parentage, will the witnesses explain to me how EID will improve genomics and genetics in the herd other than it being a box-ticking exercise for potential customers?

It was also mentioned that one of the advantages for farmers of an electronic identification for sheep would be that marts and factories would become central points of recording. Does this mean that if sheep are EID tagged, the sheep farmers can load up their trailers in the morning without doing any paperwork and go to the factory and, down the line, when it comes to flock registering or schemes the Department will accept the printouts received in the mart or factory? If there happens to be a mistake, a clerical error or a typo, who will pay the penalty if it causes issues for the farmer down the line with the Department? The farmers can show the factory printout and ask whether this is how the new scheme is working. What obligation will be on the marts or factories to supply farmers with this information? Will the factory or mart printout or email that is in the farmer's records be accepted by the Department? The question I am grappling with most in basic terms is what will change under EID with regard to lambs produced for Easter in a short space of time and going directly from the farm where they were born to the factory without going through a dealer or any other holding. In simple terms, what will change?