The Irish Cattle and Sheepfarmers Association (ICSA) has been invited to become a social partner with Government, it was announced at the organisation's annual general meeting last night.
The president of ICSA, Malcolm Thompson, said the invitation meant the organisation will be involved in key national negotiations with the other social partners.
"In my view, ICSA has earned this right. ICSA was centrally involved at the highest EU levels during the CAP reform of 2003 and led the way in the campaign for full decoupling," he said.
"I have no doubt that this invitation is of critical significance to the association and it will ensure that we are even more effective in representing farmers and defending their rights," he said.
ICSA now claims a membership of 10,000 farmers and had been the only farming group excluded from partnership talks.
The invitation to become a national partner was issued by Minister for Agriculture Mary Coughlan, who was the guest of honour at last night's agm in the Hodson Bay Hotel, Athlone.
In his address, Mr Thompson said ICSA was becoming increasingly concerned with the daily monitoring and penalising of farmers, especially by recent revelations that 8,200 farmers have been selected for cross-compliance inspections in 2006.
"That is far more than the 1 per cent inspection rate recommended by the EU. I believe that there are questions to be answered regarding what I see as the over-persecution of farmers," he said.
"Why is it, Minister, that there are some 1,600 people employed by the Department of Agriculture to supervise and inspect 130,000 farmers?" he asked.
"That's a huge level of supervision of people who are in receipt of relatively small supports - an average single farm payment of less than €10,000, €13,000 when you include rural development supports," he went on.
"What I am wondering, Minister, is whether the ratios are appropriate. Overall, there are 4,500 department employees, costing on average €51,000 in wages and expenses, to look after just 130,000 farmers, who receive on average €13,000," he said.
"Is it not a fair comparison, that the Health and Safety Authority, whose remit is to enforce safety standards across the entire workforce of two million, has an inspectorate of just 84 people? And I hear the trade unions complaining that there are just 32 inspectors to cover the minimum wage, again across a national workforce of two million," he said.
Mr Thompson urged the Minister to demand that the EU insist on the same standards for Brazilian beef as EU beef or ban it completely. He asked the Minister to extend country of origin labelling, currently mandatory on beef, to lamb and other meats.