Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Yesterday, a group of us met with the Association of Farm & Forestry Contractors of Ireland, FCI, in the audiovisual room in Leinster House 2000. One of the requests it is making to the Minister's Department and to the Government overall is for 200 million l of green diesel to be ring-fenced for its sector to ensure we get a silage crop. It is now time for grass growing during the period from St. Patrick's Day to around Hallowe'en. It is now that the growth is taking off. The earth is warming up. The FCI wants to know that it can have enough fuel at a reasonable price to take this silage from the ground, harvest and have it in the sheds. As I said, the sward initiative is fabulous and I think that is where every farmer wants to get to. It is not realistic this year, certainly where I am from, to start discing out land and reseeding but it is realistic to get a good silage crop, have it in the shed and then come November, be able to give fodder to the cattle. If the cost of fuel is spiralling, however, the cost per bale is going to go through the roof. Many farmers, particularly in the west of Ireland, are waiting to see what will happen with fuel and how that will affect the silage crop cost for summer 2022.

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