Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House. I imagine we are going to have many more conversations about this particular issue as Brexit unfolds and as the implications become more apparent. It is fair to say that we have journeyed a long way since 1 January 1973 when we joined Europe. Most of our external trade was bilateral trade with the UK. We diversified into so many areas. To this day, agriculture and the agrifood sectors still account for a vast amount of exports to the UK. Of our exports, 43% or €5.1 billion in 2015 went to the UK. Conversely, we imported 47% of total agri-sector imports from the UK, comprising €3.8 billion. This figure compares with 14% of exports in other sectors. Therefore, our agriculture and agrifood sectors are unique and in a more precarious situation, one might argue, because of our dependence on that market.

We already know that many analyses have been undertaken. In November 2015 the ESRI estimated that we could see as much as a 20% drop in trade flow between the two countries. Without a doubt, that would pose great difficulties for us.

The mushroom industry has been mentioned. Given the nature of the industry it is a good case study. Immediately we are seeing the impact of the drop in sterling and currency fluctuation. We can learn a good deal from what is happening to the mushroom farmers and we can be decisive about what interventions work. We know that 70,000 tonnes of mushrooms are produced in this country with 60,000 tonnes going to the UK. There is extraordinary dependence on that market. Already, a number of smaller operations have closed.It is testament to those who are there and have captured the market in the UK, competing with UK producers and producers from eastern Europe who are also dealing with the challenge posed by Brexit and the currency fluctuation. What specific interventions will the Minister make because farming is the backbone of our economy and everyone in the sector has been dealing with international market volatility? The mushroom industry is particularly affected by Brexit. Many of the Minister's interventions in respect of beef and dairy products have been to try to find new markets. While mushrooms and other vegetables are perishable there are new ways to transport them and with assistance perhaps new markets can be explored. The people in the mushroom industry who appeared before the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine are innovative and do a fine job against the odds of exporting into England. Working with the industry can lead to results and help them get through the difficult time. What in particular is being done for the mushroom industry?

We made statements on the budget and I welcome the suite of measures, investments and programmes in the Minister’s Department, in particular the provision for low-cost access to credit. Farmers are paid intermittently by cheque, whether for cattle or produce or through payments from the Department but in the meantime what do they live on? It is important to protect farmers from the banks which do not treat any sector fairly, whether business or home owners because they do not pass on the benefits of the low-cost credit they get from Europe. This intervention is very apt and welcome.

Fishermen may be restricted from going where they can fish and we do not know how the UK will proceed in this respect. Do we have preliminary feedback on this or on stock management for shared fisheries? Many of the codes or negotiated management agreements with other countries have a tendency to break down. This is fishermen’s livelihood. Will the Minister address some of the concerns of the fishing industry?

On a related matter that affects the bigger picture, farmers and farm organisations are concerned about the demand to reduce our carbon emissions and how that affects farming. The United Nations ambassador for climate justice, the former president Mary Robinson, suggested recently that people should move towards vegetarianism and veganism to halt climate change. Any such statements should be grounded in reality and if we want to bring people with us, we have to meet them where they are. I commend her on taking on this job, climate change affects everybody and she has brilliant stature and experience working on other issues around the world but I do not subscribe to this proposition. It conflicts with Food Wise 2025. What is the Minister doing to allay people’s fears because meat and dairy products are part of a balanced diet for people in this country? The only other source is high-protein food crops, which are developed in the tropics, in the southern hemisphere and that would involve taking food from people who are already hard pressed to feed themselves.

There is also a great deal of food waste because of the way supermarkets grade food, for example, if a tomato or mushroom is ugly it is discarded even though it has the same nutritional quality as one that is not. United Nations statistics show that 1.3 billion tonnes of food are lost or wasted every year around the world, which is equivalent to the number of people malnourished or hungry. In Europe we waste enough food to feed 870 million people. We should begin to study food waste here and the energy required to produce and transport food. This would be a more realistic step to reduce our carbon footprint and address some of the problems facing the world. Ms Robinson’s proposal is out of touch with the reality of how we need to live and the farmers who produce food.