McConalogue to meet grain and fertiliser importers to discuss war impacts

Window of opportunity in next few weeks to make decisions on supply crisis

Importers of grain and fertiliser will meet Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue on Wednesday to discuss the impact of the Russian invasion of the Ukraine.

The meeting comes as the sector is faced with supply chain difficulties given that considerable volumes of both global feed and fertiliser originate from and are traded through Ukraine and Russia.

Mr McConalogue on Tuesday met farm organisations and announced that he asked Teagasc to lead a National Fodder and Food Security Committee to explore all options to minimise the impact on farms and plan in the short-to-medium term.

“Let me be clear, there is urgency to the work of this committee and I tasked them to meet and complete their work without delay. The first meeting of the committee is this Friday and there is a window of opportunity in the next number of weeks to make decisions to help us build resilience.

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"The work of the National Fodder and Food Security Committee is the number-one priority in the Department,” Mr McConalogue said.

Tim O'Brien

Tim O'Brien

Tim O'Brien is an Irish Times journalist