Relevant Matter
Public policy or programme
Public Policy Area
EU Affairs
Period
1 Jan, 2025 to 30 Apr, 2025
Specific Details
Tillage Industry Ireland
Intended results
To request a meeting with Irish MEPs to discuss issues affecting the Tillage sector in Ireland.
To highlight that it is important to state that ‘tillage' does not have the same meaning as ‘arable' in Ireland. Irish agricultural defines arable land as land that is capable of being cultivated rather than actually cultivated. Arable land may be capable of being tilled but it could also be used as grass or forestry because of farmer preference or because of climate considerations.
It is important to state this because the word arable is used indiscriminately in the language of EU and Irish regulations.
To highlight that the area of cereals in the Republic of Ireland has been falling for decades and is now reaching a stage where it is challenging for the critical mass of the sector.
To highlight the importance of the tillage sector in Ireland to our Irish Representatives in Brussels.
To note that tillage as a land use carries very low GHG emission levels, is generally good on nutrient use efficiency, it adds biodiversity in land use to the Irish countryside and it is essential for certain bird species such as Skylark, Yellowhammer, Linnet, as well as wintering Snipe. Winter stubbles are also regarded as important foraging habitats for predatory birds, such as the Barn Owl, Long-eared Owl, Kestrel and Hen Harrier.
To emphasise that loss of land from tillage removes a low emission land use which is very useful in helping to meet our country's emissions targets. This realisation is very much behind the Government's objective to drive crop area back up to 400,000ha.
That as the national effort towards sustainability is intensified across all of society, being more self sufficient in low emissions feed grains can only be regarded as a sensible approach towards tackling Irelands dependence on feed imports of unknown environmental impact.
That low cost feed imports have been a major driver in the push towards added value markets. The malting and drinks sectors have been the most prominent and dominant of these alternatives to date but other initiatives such as gluten-free oats production and HEAR oilseed rape are also important, with increasing interest in the potential of protein production for processing
To highlight that the prospect of re-establishing a commercial milling industry is now being examined, as is the feasibility of an oilseed rape crushing plant to help retain an amount of natively produced protein feeds.
To stress that annual income uncertainty is a huge issue for the sector due, in part, to variable annual yield and, more so, from huge annual price fluctuations. With ever increasing production costs for seed, fertiliser, plant protection products and mechanisation, the production risk for growers is now very high if income does not exceed costs.
To highlight that the problem growers have is that price and yields are totally outside of their control, thus adding to the long-term vulnerability of the sector. As long as price/income is governed by imports from the cheapest priced origin in the world, Irish and European producers, especially family farms, face a very uncertain future
And most of these imported products come with almost zero traceability and can be grown with technologies that are not allowed in the EU. Examples of this would be agchem products that are no longer allowed in the EU and which are much cheaper, GMO technologies and even machinery legislative requirements. Irish/EU producers are forced to operate in a very unfair environment.
To highlight that pesticide control regulation is important for both human and environmental health. But so also is food production. The proposal to introduce a Sustainable Use Regulation (to upgrade the preceding Sustainable Use Directive) in recent years through the Farm To Fork strategy represented a significant and perhaps insurmountable challenge to Irish crop producers who depend heavily on plant protection products to protect yield potential in our moist but high yield potential climate.
That growers are very aware of the decreasing pool of actives available in the marketplace and that this will decrease further over time. They are also aware that nature and resistance are far more likely to win the battle against control when there are fewer new actives coming to the market to fight disease, weed and insect threats.
To highlight that, against this background, growers welcome the advent of new and alternative technologies, as well as IPM, providing they are proven to be effective over time. However, if we are to lose more of our chemical actives/products before the advent of effective affordable replacement technologies, this would disproportionately impact on Irish growers because of our current dependence on them.
Irish growers need access to effective alternatives before we lose more actives from our current toolbox.
That growers would also want the playing field to be levelled as these technologies emerge. Technologies and tools that are no longer allowed in the EU should not be allowed on products coming into the EU market as they will, most likely, impact on the competitiveness of all EU producers
To emphasise that Irish farmers want to see progress being made on the legislation that will allow gene editing and other NBTs (new breeding techniques) as this may provide tangible alternatives to the total reliance on pesticides.
To highlight that the ongoing income challenges experienced in the sector have impacted on the age profile within the tillage sector and on the availability of professionals to provide advice. In Ireland most of the infield advice is provided by the private sector and a proposal in the SUR that all growers be serviced by ‘independent' advisors would have been unworkable in this country, and many others.
That currently there is a scarcity of professional people available to work in the tillage sector to provide on-farm advice for crop production and crop protection. This needs to be addressed, even before we see any expansion in the area under tillage
To emphasise that the sector must be helped to cater better for generational renewal because confidence in and income from tillage is essential if it is to attract both new entrants and generational renewal. The supply of professionals has been equally impacted by the same lack of confidence, as parents guide their children towards higher income sectors.
To meet with senior inspectors in the Department of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and the Marine to stress the importance of maintaining current fertiliser application rates for tillage crops. The tillage sector is particularly vulnerable at present and actions which further damage the economic competitiveness of the sector must be avoided at all costs.
To acknowledge that the Food Vision Tillage Report seeks to increase the use of organic manures in the tillage sector. The Department of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and the Marine (DAFM) must keep this to the forefront when designing future legislation.
To acknowledge the important role that cover crops can play in reducing nutrient losses from tillage soils, but additional funding is vital if the goal is to increase the area planted in future.
To ask the Department of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and the Marine (DAFM) to review the timings around the shallow cultivation requirement following harvesting of spring cereal crops.
To highlight the importance of continued access to Calcium Ammonium Nitrate (CAN) granular fertiliser and unprotected urea for foliar use for the tillage sector.
Name of person primarily responsible for lobbying on this activity
Francie Gorman IFA President, Kieran McEvoy IFA Grain Chair, Liam MacHale IFA Director of European Affairs, Noel Banville IFA European Policy Executive, Max Potterton IFA Policy Executive
Did any Designated Public Official(DPO) or former Designated Public Official(DPO) carry out lobbying activities on your behalf in relation to this return? You must include yourself, and answer Yes, if you are a current DPO or a DPO at any time in the past. (What is a Designated Public Official?)
No
Did you manage or direct a grassroots campaign?
No
Was this lobbying done on behalf of a client?
No
Lobbying activity
The following activities occurred for this specific Subject Matter Area.
Informal communication (6-10)
Designated public officials lobbied
The following DPOs were lobbied during this return period on this specific Subject Matter Area. These DPOs were involved in at least one of the Lobbying Activities listed above, but not necessarily all of them.
As returns are specific to a Subject Matter Area the above Lobbying Activities may be associated with multiple returns.
Aodhán Ó Ríordáin
MEP (European Parliament)
Barry Andrews
MEP (European Parliament)
Barry Cowen
MEP (European Parliament)
Bill Callanan
Chief Inspector (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Billy Kelleher
MEP (European Parliament)
Ciaran Mullooly
MEP (European Parliament)
Cynthia Ní Mhurchú
MEP (European Parliament)
Kathleen Funchion
MEP (European Parliament)
Luke Ming Flanagan
MEP (European Parliament)
Lynn Boylan
MEP (European Parliament)
Maria Walsh
MEP (European Parliament)
Michael McNamara
MEP (European Parliament)
Nina Carberry
MEP (European Parliament)
Regina Doherty
MEP (European Parliament)
Sean Kelly
MEP (European Parliament)
Barry Cassidy
Special Adviser (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Martin Heydon
Minister (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)