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

A vibrant suckler herd is an important part of Irish agriculture. That does not mean that we do not need to constantly strive for more efficiency and to ensure that the emissions footprint of our herd continues to decrease. That goes for the dairy herd too. There is substantial efficiency built into the latter and, from the perspective of emissions, we produce milk in a more efficient way than any other country on the planet. We rate reasonably well in the context of beef but we can do more, while at the same time keeping farmers in business. In the context of the support fund Commissioner Hogan proposes to bring forward and the funding that the Government will bring forward with that, there is a reference in the regulation to a voluntary temporary adjustment to production. The Deputy will be aware that in 2016, when the dairy sector experienced extreme volatility, Ireland received exceptional aid which also involved a voluntary supply reduction sector.

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