Smith says he is hopeful for farming

MINISTER FOR Agriculture Brendan Smith said he was hopeful the farming industry had turned the corner.

“There is no doubt that the industry is weathering a very difficult period, exacerbated by very dramatic price volatility,” he said.

The outlook for prices in the medium-term was positive, due to significant world demand for dairy products based on an increasing population and economic growth in developing countries, he said. “For an industry that exports 85 per cent of its produce, valued last year at €2.3 billion, the anticipated growth in world demand should bring real benefits.’’

Opening a debate on farming and the agri-food sector, Mr Smith said the beef industry was even more dependent on exports, with more than 90 per cent of production exported.

“As important as export earnings are to the economy, this level of export-dependence makes the sector susceptible to fluctuations and trends in international and EU markets,” he said.

“The global economic downturn has seen consumers curtail spending, with a consequential decline in beef consumption throughout Europe this year.’’

The fall, said Mr Smith, had been especially noticeable at the “high value’’ end of the market, which was specifically targeted in recent years by Irish producers and processors. Nonetheless, as in the dairy sector, the medium-term prospects were encouraging.

“Rising population levels, improved standards of living that are forecast, growing urbanisation and changing dietary patterns, particularly in Asia, are all contributing to increasing food demand.’’

The EU Commission had estimated that beef and veal production was expected to decline by almost 5 per cent by 2015, leading to an EU supply gap of 600,000 tons and providing market opportunities for efficient producers, Mr Smith said.

Fine Gael spokesman Michael Creed said the Government should look outside agriculture for budget savings, because farming was on its knees with incomes plummeting. “The latest figures on farm incomes show a fall of 28 per cent in 2009 following a 13 per cent fall last year: a cumulative drop of 41 per cent,’’ he added.

Labour’s Willie Penrose said that the flooding showed the need for a Shannon river catchment authority to act as an umbrella organisation for all stakeholders.

Sinn Féin’s Martin Ferris said the average farm income was estimated to be between €13,000 and €16,000, which represented about a quarter of public-sector wages.