Paul Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I wish to be associated with welcoming the young members of Dáil na nÓg and the perhaps older members of the farm representative bodies in the sheep sector.

I thank the Minister for attending this welcome debate. I was one of those who led the call for it. I hope that, on the back of it, we can see some developments in the sector, which has a long history. As the Minister rightly stated, it is the second largest sector in Irish agriculture. While people might argue for bacon and cabbage, Irish lamb stew is Ireland's traditional meal. This in itself shows how far back our relationship with sheep goes, not only as a farming community, but as a nation.

As the Minister highlighted, this sector is under pressure and it warrants our help in getting through the current crisis and improving its viability going forward. While I welcome the €1.5 billion for ACRES, the €30 million for the fodder support scheme, the €37 million for the organic farming scheme and the funding for the sheep improvement scheme under the new CAP, much of that is environment-based money as opposed to production-based money. While it might help the farm family to get from A to B with a little more ease, it is not particularly targeted at, and will not help the survival of, the sheep sector, and this debate is about the sheep sector within the agriculture sector. Sheep have many advantages from an environmental point of view. They emit fewer greenhouse gases than other livestock equivalents. By virtue of the fact that they can graze on poorer quality land, they help our environmental objectives.

I welcome the wool feasibility study and the formation of the Irish-grown wool council. Wool is an annual crop, for want of a better word. It is renewable and has great potential. While I welcome the council's foundation and work, as well as the Minister's investment in the council, I hope to see progress from it. That shearing a sheep is a net loss for a farmer is a terrible indictment. It costs more to shear a sheep than the farmer gets for the wool. In a world where every debate, regardless of sector, is about renewables, wool is one of the most renewable and environmentally friendly products we could have. It is used for clothing, but its great potential in terms of insulation has not yet been explored to its full extent. I welcome the investment and the meeting of the council, but we want to see hard results coming from it. We want to see wool becoming a profitable product again.

I welcome the funding for schemes. There has been a great deal of debate about them. Depending on who one talks to, for example, the €12 per ewe under the sheep improvement scheme does not go far enough. It is an improvement, though. Ultimately, it is also a welfare scheme, in that the money goes towards the enhancement of animal welfare. Animal welfare is also a major debate. It is important that some of the actions and conditions relating to the achievement of that money improve animal welfare.

On that subject, and product price and margins aside, the next largest issue – it is an even larger issue if you happen to be someone affected by it – affecting the sheep sector is that of dog controls. I welcome the initiatives being taken by the Minister and his ministerial colleague, Deputy Humphreys, but we need action. While the legislation, microchipping and so forth need to be improved, many laws are not being enforced. We need to see more enforcement of the current dog laws. From speaking with people out there, they have an image in their heads of savage dogs attacking sheep, but it can be the smallest, friendliest Poodle. It is called "sheep worrying", not "sheep attacking". Imagine heavily pregnant ewes in a field and a little poodle that loves a chase. Even if the poodle never kills or even bites them, it is the chase that can be detrimental in terms of lamb loss. People need to be made aware of that. It is terrible when sheep are viciously attacked and pulled apart, but the worrying and chasing can do every bit as much damage, if not more. We cannot stress that point enough.

Recently, the agriculture committee met the directors of Sheep Milk Ireland, the Crosse brothers from Cashel. They put across a brilliant picture to us of a sheep milk sector. They studied the matter a great deal. Apparently, the sector is large in New Zealand. Going by their presentation, there is a high margin. Sheep milk accounts for 1.5% of dairy production. It contains 50% more protein than cow's milk and sheep milk cheese is in demand. The project they started is importing sheep milk to complement their own sheep milk in order to get the product off the ground and build markets. I raised this matter with Bord Bia when its representatives appeared before the committee two weeks later. Bord Bia showed great interest. Its representatives said it had met the Crosse brothers and was looking into some potential developments in future. I plead with the Minister to take this matter on board, perhaps with his colleagues in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. Growing a primary industry is expensive, but this has the potential for a long-term consolidation of the sheep sector.Rather than looking for or giving handouts as a sticking-plaster solution in respect of the crisis that exists, whether it is because of the input costs, the war, inflation or whatever, if a potential lifeline for the sheep sector could be the sheep milk market, then that is a nettle the Minister should grasp. He should leave no stone unturned because it is an ideal scenario.

The ewe rears the lamb for 30 days and is then milked commercially for six months. You will still be producing sheepmeat and there is the added income from the dairy side.

I have a question on which I am seeking clarification. There is much debate about the Windsor Framework and cross-Border sheep transportation. What number of sheep are coming into our market from the North?