Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the motion tabled by my Fine Gael colleague, Deputy Naughten. It is important that time is given to this issue in light of the stark reality of the decline in the number of farms in the past few decades and of the increase in the number of farmers and their spouses who have had to seek off-farm employment in the same period. The agri-vision 2015 report is particularly interesting in light of two issues which I will address shortly and to which Deputy Crawford already alluded. I welcome my colleagues' calls to implement a clear consumer focused food label, including the origin and processor, and to establish an explicit system for the catering industry. These steps will add further value to our products.

I take this opportunity to discuss related issues also. The Minister will no doubt be aware of the decision of Minch Malt, which is owned by Greencore, to close its maltings plant in Banagher and its branches in Tullamore and Borrisokane. I do not know when this decision was made but it was notified simultaneously to the staff of the three plants at 10 a.m. last Friday.

We constantly talk here and in general about added value products in agriculture, yet we now see this company turn its back in an instant on 350 specialist malting barley growers in the midland region. These growers supplied between 40,000 and 50,000 tonnes of malting barley to Banagher each year producing about 30,000 tonnes of malt.

The figures quoted by IFA deputy president Ruaidhrí Deasy show the attitude of Greencore to Irish growers. The numbers with contracts to supply Banagher have dropped from 700 to 350 in only eight years. The fact the company only announced its decision last Friday can only be interpreted as cynical and calculating. Perhaps it felt, with the heat related to its Carlow decision, it might as well make all its decisions together and take all the heat at the one time. That certainly seems to be the attitude adopted.

See this speech in context