Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I join others in asking for a debate on the crisis facing the agricultural sector. It would be appropriate if we had the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine before us in the House. I very much welcome the decision of the Government yesterday to set aside up to €12 million to assist farmers generally in meeting the challenges faced with the crisis in the grain supply. The encouragement of the Government in that regard is helpful, and I am sure that €12 million will bear fruit.

Notwithstanding that, considering the critical importance of our agricultural sector in terms of food security and the uninterrupted supply of food, it is absolutely important that we address all of the aspects of farming. There is an impact on the dairy sector. The inability to import grain from Ukraine and Russia in the back end of this year will impact on the liquid milk market. Farmers may not be able to milk year round. The cost of diesel, fertiliser and inputs generally will have a very significant impact on the beef sector and the ability to grow grass at an affordable price. To be sure, milk and beef prices are holding their own and have improved in the marketplace. However, any increases that have been made in recent weeks and months are completely wiped out now by the increase in the cost of inputs.

If we are to have a strategic approach here, and I know that is the focus of the Minister, we need to have an open and frank debate here. There is no point addressing this crisis at the back end of the year in September, when we discover we do not have enough grass and grain to feed our cattle through the winter to produce beef and milk and we do not have the supplies to meet our own demands and the demands of elsewhere in Europe. Now is the time before the growing season starts. We can plan ahead. It is not just about money, although money is a very important part of it. It is about having a strategy to address the crisis we see emerging. That is why it would be very important to have a debate in this House at the earliest possible opportunity.