Farmer feed and forage costs up by ‘half a billion’ in 2018 - ICMSA

The figures on the final estimates of output, input and income in agriculture for 2018 have been described as “catastrophic” by the president of a dairy farmers’ lobby group.

The president of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA) Pat McCormack said: “In general terms, the costs borne by Irish farmers last year went up by more than half a billion euro.”

He explained that the figures show “the cost of feed increasing by €355 million, forage costs by almost €200 million and fertiliser by almost €70 million”.

McCormack noted that this gives an accurate idea of the challenge that Irish farming faced in 2018.

In terms of financial impact on farmers, the ICMSA president said that the 16.8% reduction in operating surplus “highlighted the exceptionally difficult year experienced by farmers with the impact of the severe weather conditions resulting in a 13% increase in the cost of inputs”.

“The figures are hugely significant, but it’s the underlying message that’s more important.

Our farming sector has always been completely exposed to abuse by links further along the supply-chain and to extreme weather events.

“The fact is that extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and we still see very little sign of any willingness to stop the abuse of farmers by the other links in the food supply-chain and the result of this is a situation where farm incomes can fluctuate wildly from year-to-year.”

Farm Management Deposit Scheme

McCormack said: “The Farm Management Deposit Scheme needs to be introduced as a matter of urgency as we desperately and obviously need measures that can address that destructive cycle.”

At last week’s National Economic Dialogue in Dublin Castle, the ICMSA called for the Farm Management Deposit Scheme to be introduced and a spokesperson said “in the context of the potential threats from Brexit, Mercosur and challenges necessitated by climate change, the case for such a scheme has never been stronger and must be implemented as part of Budget 2020”.

The ICMSA president added that farmers “seem to have been abandoned to wild price and income volatility on both the input and output sides”.

“It must be obvious to everyone looking at Irish farmers having to pay more than half a billion euro in extra costs in just one year that this can’t go on,” concluded McCormack.