Shane McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)

The Department has continued to be very active in recent months in raising the question of an adjustment to the milk quota regime at political and official level and at Commission level, in a determined effort to secure a soft landing for all member states in the lead-up to the milk quota abolition in 2015.

Among the options discussed regarding a soft landing are the front-loading of the remaining quota increases, a reduction in the super levy, a further reduction in butterfat correction levels or a kind of EU flexi-milk arrangement which would operate, provided EU production overall was within quota. Most attention has been focused on the butterfat correction and in recent weeks a coalition of member states involving Ireland, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium and Cyprus, has formally put a specific proposal to the special committee for agriculture for an adjustment to the butterfat correction mechanism.

Unfortunately, the Commission has consistently resisted attempts to reconsider this issue, as it has resisted attempts to revisit the outcome of the 2008 CAP health check agreement in an overall sense. This is a view which is supported by a number of member states, some of whom are firmly against any further adjustment to the health check agreement. It is also the case that only a minority of member states is likely to be adversely affected by the current quota restrictions and therefore persuading a qualified majority to agree to an adjustment of the current regime represents a significant challenge. There are currently no signs of a breakthrough in this regard.

With a super levy being an increasing likelihood as we head towards quota abolition, all dairy farmers must carefully plan their production activities and pay close attention to the limitations imposed by the quota regime if they are to avoid potential super levy fines.

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