Four out of 10 Irish families eating turkey for Christmas will be consuming an imported bird.
Official figures this week show that of the two million turkeys which will be eaten over the festive season, nearly 40 per cent will come from abroad.
Italy and France provide the most turkey imports, followed by Poland. These cheaper imports have put the local industry at a major disadvantage.
One of the last remaining smaller Irish producers of turkeys, Michael Reilly from Maynooth, said only the large Irish poultry units could compete with the imports.
"I cannot compete in terms of cost with the imports but I sell my birds on the basis of quality and traceability, and that is what makes it work."
He said the Celtic Tiger had put inordinate difficulties on small producers as it became impossible to hire seasonal workers to pluck birds.
"I ended up taking a contract with a plant in Ballymena, Co Antrim, where my birds are processed and then I deliver them to the local butchers."
Mr Reilly, who produces 9,000 birds annually, said there were only three small producers of the Christmas bird in north Kildare left. "Ten years ago there were at least 20 but they are all gone now."
The difficulties facing Irish producers was highlighted by Fine Gael agriculture spokesman Denis Naughton, who said many Irish people would believe they were eating local produce. "Consumers want to buy Irish but it is clear that measures urgently need to be put in place to ensure that Irish consumers have this option."