Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The front page of the Farming Independentsets out the uncertainty in the industry. Tonight is an opportunity for the Minister to clarify the position.

Earlier this year we debated the butterfat adjustment. The 2% figure would have represented a saving of €30 million for the industry. Where is the possibility of a butterfat adjustment due to our exceptional circumstances?

We are glad to see progress being made on the various issues, for example, the investment in processors. We are also delighted that the industry is expanding at such a rate. However, we must remember something. Expansion and intensification bring their own problems that individual dairy farmers milking 20 or 25 cows 20 years ago did not have. The phrases "BVD", "IBR", "neospora" and "salmonella" were not in the veterinary dictionary at the time, but they are common currency today. They are the challenges that individual farmers will have to meet on a daily basis.

The superlevy regime is extraordinary when one thinks about it, particularly the fact that we have not been able to negotiate a soft landing in the changeover.

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