Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On each occasion I give an answer, I am presented with further requests. This is a serious matter and the Department and the industry have responded to it together in a very comprehensive way. Help is on the way for the many farmers who continue to experience significant shortages of fodder.

In an extreme situation, we will intervene and feed their animals until they can afford to do so. Co-ops and, in some cases, marts are importing large volumes of fodder and trying to get it out to farms as quickly as possible. This will continue.

We have discussed the matter with a number of banks. The key banks have attended long meetings in my Department. They assure me that they want to lend money to farmers as bridging finance to get over the credit hump that many farmers experience after a difficult winter. The main co-ops are extending a great deal more credit than they normally would. We are undertaking an initiative to try to return the grazing season to normal and to encourage farmers to buy and put out fertiliser. During May, all co-ops are providing interest-free credit to purchase fertilisers in order to encourage farmers to return to a normal grass growing season.

I thank the farming organisations, which have been supportive during this difficult time. I thank the Irish Dairy Board, which has responded to our requests for help by putting a significant fund in place to support dairy farmers. As of today, SuperValu has announced a significant fund to support farmers who are struggling because of fodder shortages. Whether it is retailers, the Irish Dairy Board, co-ops or farming organisations that are putting money behind their words or whether it is my Department and the arms of the State, including Teagasc, that are working with farmers, there is a significant collective effort to get farmers through a difficult number of weeks. We will pull through. Given the strong prices for beef, dairy and other agrifood commodities, we can salvage this year, but we need to get through the coming weeks. To do so, significant volumes of fodder need to be imported. This is happening.

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