Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Savage and his delegation for presenting a detailed report to us. When the word and the possibility of tariffs is mentioned it sends a shiver up one's spine. The UK market, no matter what happens, is always going to be a market of great importance to us as the UK is our nearest neighbour. One sees the difficulty our beef business is in at the moment. Some 48% of our exports are going to the UK. When we get a few dry days the meat factories are able to cut the price of cattle.

What they will do regarding tariffs in a post-Brexit scenario is too frightening to contemplate. One thing is certain, however. Our beef industry, as we know it, will not survive a scenario where we have hindered access to the UK market. There is no way our beef industry would be able to sustain any surcharge on our products getting onto UK shelves or into the UK food service industries.

The Fianna Fáil members present met the Labour Party agricultural spokesman. In terms of the green impact of all this, climate change is rightly at the centre of all agricultural discussions and many economic discussions. Some people in the UK believe they can source their food from different parts of the globe and that this will not have no impact in the context of climate change. This is something that must be put into the mix with respect to every scenario. If the UK decides to import their food from half way across the world, be it lamb or butter from New Zealand or beef from South America, that will have an impact on climate change and an adverse impact on us. While the UK has indicated that it will not have export certification, what will happen if standards start to deviate between the UK and the member states of the EU? The latter probably happen over time with the UK being a non-EU country. When we were trying to eradicate brucellosis, the standards that obtained in the Six Counties were different from those that operated in the Twenty-six Counties and that definitely delayed the eradication of brucellosis here. That was just an animal health issue. If standards deviate, how will we not need to have certification going both ways?

Regarding Food Wise 2025, with all the various challenges coming down the tracks in the context of Brexit, climate change, Mercosur, etc., it makes a mockery of matters to be even focusing on the targets laid out in that plan. Farmers' incomes will definitely not be maintained if we try to reach those production targets. I note from the witnesses' paper that there has been a huge increase exports from 2009 to 2017. When it is set out in black and white, it can be seen that the increase in production and exports in this country has been massive. Unfortunately, the primary producer is not experiencing such gain from that.

There has been much talk about trying to find alternative markets in a post-Brexit scenario. No analysis has been carried out in respect of the fact that other major agricultural exporters in the EU will also be displaced by that development. The Danes, the Dutch and even the Poles are major exporters to the UK. If their access to the UK is hindered, they will be also be trying to find alternative markets. The Danes are a major exporter of pigmeat to the UK market. We are logically focusing on how much our products will be displaced but our European counterparts have considerable business with UK. Has any analysis been done of the level of business that would be lost by the Danes, the Dutch and the Poles post-Brexit? While the UK would be a major exporter of lamb to France and while there may be some opportunities in that market, there will generally be overwhelming minuses as regards the balance of imports and exports. That is a matter of concern because those countries are very efficient producers. If they are looking for alternative markets, it will make Bord Bia's task all the more difficult.

We have reduced our dependence on the beef sector to just under 50% but that taken a long number of years. When I sat on the board of Bord Bia, much focus was placed on reducing that dependence. While such dependence has been reduced, to further reduce it to, for example, 40% would probably involve a decade's work. Therefore, it is not feasible in a short few months to find alternative markets.

The British will cite EU bureaucracy as one of their main reasons for exiting. I note from the Mr. Savage's paper that the paperwork involved for certain individuals and the administrative cost will increases for businesses and the agrifood sector. Once paperwork is required at points of entry and exit, it will add extra costs and there will be delays. I saw a recent programme covering the Sweden-Norway border, which is a border we were told was working extremely efficiently but there were extremely long delays along that border. We can expect a similar, if not worse, scenario.

A great deal of product is brought from the Six Countries to the South to be processed. If we have quality assurance under all our various schemes and we operate them under the Twenty-six Counties banner here and if the UK operates different standards, how can such product from the North be brought to the South, processed and sold under our green label, whether it be under the Kerrygold brand, Origin Green or whatever? If it coming from outside the EU, how can it be marketed under our umbrella if it has not been scrutinised to the same level and does not have to meet the same standards? A great deal of product, especially on the meat and dairy side, is being brought to the South. How can Lakeland Dairies, Glanbia or the other co-operatives that process Northern Ireland milk products, with milk possibly being the principal product, put the label Origin Green or Kerrygold on it when it comes from a country that operates standards that are different from the standards under which our product is produced? We are asking many more questions than we are getting answers. The whole scenario is frightening to contemplate but the key question is: how this will work in practical terms and how can we make maintain such access?