Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The most important thing about the farming industry in Ireland is that it is embedded in all our communities. Deputy Fitzmaurice alluded to something about which I am concerned, namely, equity companies and vulture funds buying large tracts of land in Ireland. This prevents young farmers who want to expand their farms from increasing output and making good livings from the land rather than struggling with smaller farms. We need to ensure this issue is addressed. I know there are legal issues, but it is very disconcerting to see large tracts of land being bought by people with cash in their hands while poor farmers who want to buy another 15 or 20 acres adjacent to their land are prevented from so doing.

In my constituency, Galway East, flooding and the damage it has done to family farms is a major issue. It has affected silage slabs, slatted houses and land. Last week I spoke to a farmer who has to reseed 80 acres of land. He did the work four years ago and has to repeat it this year. He is receiving no support from anybody and is suffering badly because there is no backup or support for him as he tries to address the problems created by nature.

Having listened and spoken to farmers in my area, I know one of the major concerns they have is the price of their product leaving the farm gate compared with its price on the shelf. The division of who gets what along the line leaves a lot to be desired. Farmers who are producing the best of beef, lamb and pork find they are not making money. Prices are desperate, yet processors and producers are making large profits at the expense of farmers. If we do not tackle this problem in a fair way, we will find many more farmers will get out of the business.

At some stage in the not-too-distant future the landlord system will return, whereby people will own large tracts of land which are farmed by small peasant farmers. We will have desolation in our countryside. We are going into that with our eyes open and without realising the problems.

Another issue facing farmers living in rural Ireland and trying to do business is broadband. As we know, farms are businesses, and more and more grant applications have to be submitted by computer. We do not have the required broadband to back that up, which is creating major problems for people who are trying to download maps and for farm advisers. The system is unworkable. If we want farming to be treated as a business and are trying to create a system whereby everything farmers do is transparent, all the information for grants is available and applications are processed properly, it is important that farmers are able to do so in the required manner. Otherwise they will not be able to access grant payments.

The other big issue relates to the ability of farmers to access loans. For cashflow reasons it is very important for them to be able to extract loans from the banks. Loans are not being made available by the retail banks. European Investment Bank, EIB, funding is available and it should be provided at a very low interest rate to allow farmers to draw down loans when they need them and pay them back after the harvest or when they get their creamery cheques.

My final point relates to dairy farmers. They will reach a critical point in the autumn, as will the beef trade, and we must make sure export lines are open for stock and that we have some form of protection or assistance for farmers who will experience a significant drop in the price of milk towards the latter end of the year. Thank you, a Chathaoirligh, for giving me a few minutes to speak.

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