Pat Deering (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for giving me a couple of minutes to say a few words on the issue. I come from the heart of rural Ireland. We do not often get an opportunity to speak about agriculture. I was delighted to see that in the past couple of weeks many Members in this House have a newfound interest in agriculture which is strange for a change. I hope that is maintained in the future.

Agriculture is very important to rural areas of Ireland. During the so-called bad days between 2007 and 2011, agriculture dragged the country out of the mire in which it was at the time. Agriculture made sure that we laid the foundation for the strong base we have in the country today. It is very important that agriculture is maintained in the upcoming period.

The big issue at the moment is with the beef sector. This sector has been in difficulty for a number of years. The sector is in deep difficulty when 114% of the beef farmers' income comes from Europe and it must be addressed. The Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and Marine with the involvement of Deputies McConalogue, Cahill and others, produced a cross-party report on the sector in June or July. We made 12 recommendations, the majority of which have been taken on board by most of the farming organisations in recent weeks. The report found that there is no silver bullet to solve the problem. It is a very complex issue and a very complex sector to deal with.

My late father used to say that the suckler cow died in debt and he was right. Once a year the suckler cow produces a calf and that is the only thing she does. The farmer must wait until September or October to get a few euro out of her. She then goes on for the following year and the same issue arises. We have major issues to make that sector profitable in future and it will not be easy.

In recent weeks we have seen difficulties in the relationship between the factories, processors and the primary producers because transparency has been a major issue for some time. Trust has broken down completely and there is no confidence in the sector at the moment. It is vital to rebuild that trust because at the end of the day, whether it is a dispute today, tomorrow or the next day, that farmer has to go to the factory with his end product. That trust and confidence must be rebuilt.

It is important to build on the agreement made in the past couple of weeks. It may not be the perfect solution, but it is a very important first step. A crucial part of that is the proposed taskforce. It is important that the taskforce comes into operation as soon as possible. It needs to meet on a regular basis and specific timeframes need to be put in place to ensure we have a definite result from it.

When the EU directive on unfair trading practices is transposed into Irish law, it will provide more strength. It is important to have a sector regulator to deal with the beef sector across the board. A groceries sector regulator was introduced in Great Britain a number of years ago and it has proven to be very successful. A beef sector regulator would compliment the work done with the agreement in recent weeks.

See this speech in context