Shane McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)

I am pleased to have an opportunity to speak on agriculture. It is my first time to speak on the subject since I moved from the transport area. After the news of recent days it is a pleasure to talk about agriculture which depends on two things, namely, weather and a good price. In the past four to five years the farming community and those employed on farms got neither. It has been a good year for farming weather-wise, whether one is involved in dairy, beef or tillage.

I come from a rural area. I was a dairy farmer from the age of 14 to 47. This is the first time an upbeat feeling has been evident in the farming community when farmers call into a shop or pub for a drink. Money is there now. We will have to start again in the way we did when we joined the European Community in the early 1970s. We must start at the bottom. Five or six years ago when the economy was flying one could not get a person to drive a tractor or milk a cow. Small farmers in the area of north Meath where I come from and over the border into Cavan locked up their slatted units and went to work on the buildings. They have moved back now.

The best saying I have heard is from a friend of mine, namely, there is great money in farming if it were not for the bills. That was always the case. In the past three years the bills were not paid. There is a great opportunity given the good price for tillage and that some crops have been bought forward for next year. The dairy and beef sectors have also held their own. I advise the Minister that under no circumstances should the budget affect anyone in the agrisector. Although people in the sector have had a good year, they have waited for the past two years for that money, be it the person who sold the seed or the fertiliser. I urge the Minister, and Deputy Aylward and his colleagues, not to jeopardise the one industry that is beginning to create employment.

Last week I sent in a request to extend the slurry spreading season. There was a certain amount of uproar at home because a couple of contractors in my area and the men who work for them said they had another two weeks worth of work. We must start afresh and examine all aspects of farming. It is necessary to re-examine the prohibition on the spreading of slurry from October to January.

Food is what it is all about. The world's population is growing. In the past 25 to 30 years this country has been forced into producing the best food in the world. At times, we as farmers did not like the regulations and having the Department coming in on top of one but that is the regime in place and we are used to it. The ending of milk quotas presents a significant opportunity. Milk herds are worth much more now because other countries that got out of the industry are now buying stock from this country. I recall that when we first joined the European Union the man who worked on our farm got £7 a week. Almost within the space of six or eight months his wages went to £70. We started to buy luxury goods such as cheese from Holland.

There is an opening in eastern Europe for our products. Deputy Johnny Brady is present in the Chamber. There is an opportunity to bring in Bord Bia and for those we trust to sell our products abroad to put a programme before us for the next four years. Irish food has a great name everywhere. If there is an increase of €1 billion in sales this year compared to last year, that is just the start. Quotas are being abolished and the dairy herd will be allowed to produce more milk, and the fact that quality of beef determines the price paid for an animal is starting to work in our favour because the quality of animals in our fields is far higher than even ten years ago.

The weather has been favourable this year. If the weather had not held out, farming would have been gone but it stayed fine, quality was good and farmers are being paid. As a result, their suppliers are being paid and the small shops and retailers are being paid. We must, however, be ruthless in protecting the price paid to the food producer. We had a habit of squeezing the farmer to the limit, allowing him to earn a bare week's wages. If a farmer gets an extra €10,000, he will not spend it on a new kitchen or a new car, he will spend it upgrading his farm. That is why it is crucial that farming should be left alone in the budget. It should be left as it was. Payments are being graded out and it cannot be done overnight.

Sheep farmers had a rough year, even though there are great prices, because thousands of lambs were lost in the early spring because of abortion. This must be highlighted, perhaps up to €2 million in exports was lost because of that. In my area one farmer lost his entire flock of lambs and half of his sheep died, 100 lambs at €100 each, a loss of €10,000.

The agricultural organisations, the Oireachtas committee and An Bord Bia must be strong and let things get back to previous levels. Farmers were not well paid when the economy was flying but people will now milk a cow, lift the eggs and look after sheep and that is where we must start. A farmer runs more than a farm, he runs a business and he must account for every cent spent. If a farmer has a turnover of €200,000, it is the same as a shop in the parish and he must be looked after.

I urge the sale of Irish food. I have been on one trip since I was elected, to Kiev in the Ukraine. It is not in the EU but those countries are now in the same position as we were 30 years ago. It is a fantastic nation that wants educated people but those people have never been able to buy luxuries. All of those countries now are coming out of recession quicker than us. We must be ready when the quota system is abolished and people want to buy luxury food, because be it poultry, pigmeat or beef, we have it. We have the units for hens, pigs, beef, dairy and sheep and thankfully our tillage men got a great opening this year. Now is the time to bring in those selling our products and give them this responsibility. The hard work that has been done in the industry to overcome bad weather and bureaucracy has paid off and no one can point the finger at us about the quality of our food. We had a slight blip in the pig industry but it was sorted out quickly and has since picked up.

Deputy Johnny Brady knows farming much better than me, and Deputy Sargent is interested in vegetable growing; we should all get together and get those we depend on to sell our products to do their jobs and promote Irish food. The economy will recover and agriculture is the sector that will lead the way.

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