Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

To address the specific issue of the IFA's proposal for a pig stability fund, this is being considered by the Department in conjunction with key stakeholders. It is being requested that a €100 million fund be made available to pig farmers by the Department, with €50 million to be repaid over a 14-year term through a statutory levy on pigs slaughtered or exported live. This proposal would have significant Exchequer implications as well as State aid implications regarding the Exchequer funding element and at a statutory level. The Minister has engaged with the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, ISIF, to ask that urgent consideration be given to developing a suitable instrument to manage market volatility for the pig sector. Discussions are ongoing regarding developing a financial instrument as a medium-term solution to help address volatility. As I said, these are cyclical issues, and this cycle might be a protracted one.

Nationally as well, the pig roundtable, chaired by the Minister of State, Deputy Heydon, meets quarterly with a focus on key strategic developments in the sector, with reference to the relevant actions set out in key strategy documents. These include the programme for Government and Food Vision 2030. The next roundtable meeting is in early May. A new pigmeat reflection group has also been established at EU level, comprising representatives from member states and key stakeholders, to examine, through civil dialogue, the structural challenges facing the sector, because these issues are impacting across Europe and worldwide. The group has already met twice and it is scheduled to produce a report in the first quarter of 2023.

I reiterate the support of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the Department in trying to resolve the challenges facing this vital sector of the Irish economy and agrifood businesses. We all want to seek a solution that is equitable and fair to the producers and to ensure the sector not only survives but thrives in future.

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