Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 29 April 2026

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture and Food

Fertiliser Input Costs in the Agricultural Sector: Discussion

2:00 am

Mr. Edward Carr:

There is no point in wiping them off the face of the earth and saying there is no future for them. Unfortunately, the dynamic has changed. I would love if it was like when I was growing up that you would make a good living from 40 cows, but unfortunately it has gone away from that now. The scale is bigger but at the same time we have to try to slow down that pace as much as we possibly can so that another generation or two will get a chance to make a living off the land. That is what we try to do through this generation and all the rest at co-operative level in particular, to try to encourage our members and to work with them. That generation needs help. When we go out there to farm organisations and everywhere else, there are many young people who are willing to take on the mantle. While there will fewer farmers producing, there will still be as much produced. If we stopped putting regulations in their faces, it would be very helpful.