Mr. Joe Burke:

Again, the current situation is that the two ferry companies continue to look set to sail on similar days, and the capacity issue also seems to be at a similar level. There is therefore no immediate solution in sight that will see the numbers increase dramatically on last spring. Taking a long-term approach, we advise and work with all the various operators in order to look at the supply chain and see whether we can breed superior animals that will be more valuable even for the home trade, be it through increased usage of beef crossing or usage of better bulls. Similarly, we are involved in a number of other programmes to highlight all the various options that are available at the start of the supply chain through breeding to produce a better-quality calf, while also recognising this is a very important outlet in order to secure markets for the pure male dairy calves in particular.