Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 6 October 2015

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Dairy Industry: Irish Farmers Association

2:00 pm

Mr. Teddy Cashman:

The question, as far as I remember, was about the impact on the Irish market in the local scenario. It is simple enough. In Ireland, liquid milk is about 10% of the market. The retail market for liquid milk is €530 million or €540 million. It is a question of nurturing the market at home because we are among the biggest consumers of liquid milk in Europe and in the world. The UK, Scandinavia, Ireland and probably Australia are the biggest consumers of liquid milk in the world. What one has, one holds and nurtures. It expands into the world after that in that if people nurture and appreciate the market at home, it is much easier to sell abroad and bring people in here as well. A buy-in from the whole community is important. It might not be as tangible from the financial point of view but what is done at home must also be projected in sales abroad. There are two issues around it.