Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am sharing time with Deputy Michael Healy-Rae.

I am glad to get the opportunity to speak on behalf of the people I represent, namely, the small rural farmers throughout County Kerry, from Poulgorm Bridge through Kilgarvan, Kenmare and Sneem to Valencia Island. They are basically suckler farmers supplying top quality calves to beef finishers and fatteners around the country. The best of calves leave Kenmare, Cahirciveen and the marts in Castleisland, Listowel and Tralee for beef finishers in the rest of the country. These suckler farmers play a key role. They work very hard and produce top quality calves. They stay up all night when cows are calving and theirs is an onerous job. They have the breeding of animals down to a fine art.

Our 70,000 beef farmers are continuously being put under pressure by the factories when they decide to reduce the prices. These farmers are the backbone not only of rural areas but the whole of Ireland. More than 10,000 are involved in the processing industry, which is worth more than €2.5 billion to the economy.

The factories are blackguarding the beef producers and finishers. With regard to the four-movement rule and the 30-month rule, as I asked the previous Taoiseach, when an animal is hanging up in a factory who will say it is 31 months old or moved through farms five or seven times? These are ridiculous rules but I know what they are about. Their purpose is to give the factories the data so they know when the animals will be coming to them. They then have animals to match out of their own feedlots and they can bring down the price the farmer should get. This is what they are doing and it is controlling the prices.

I appreciate that the Minister of State said he is a farmer’s son. I am also a farmer’s son and a farmer, having been farming all my life. I understand what people have to go through day and night. When we overcome everything else we still have to contend with the weather, as we are doing currently. Fertiliser, feedstuff and diesel costs have gone though the roof, but we will not see prices in factories matching that. I remind the Minister of State that prices have gone down in recent days.

We are calling for a beef regulator to be established to ensure farmers are properly paid. A beef regulator could also find out what is happening with the retailers. The retailers are saying they never sought a four-movement rule. It is of no benefit to them and nor is the 30-month rule. I appeal to the Minister to get rid of those two rules. The factories have no divine right or authority from anybody to do this. I ask the Government to remove those two rules. Farmers have gone through too much.

We need to give greater care and protection to producers and consumers to ensure our emerging international trading environment continues into the horizon. Farmers are under threat from Mercosur and from New Zealand and Australian exports. We hear the English are doing a deal with the Australians. We are supplying the greater part of our beef production to the UK. If we lose that market, farmers will be put under more pressure by the factories.

I appeal to the Minister of State to ensure we open up new markets for live cattle exports, notwithstanding what the Green Party has been saying. Farmers are being victimised and treated like eco-criminals. The Tánaiste is supporting a vegan diet. Everything is down on the farmer. I appeal to the Government to take a stand and show whether they are standing with beef farmers and small farmers in rural Ireland.

See this speech in context