Independent TD Danny Healy-Rae has said the restrictions on marts under Level 5 are “most unfair”.
As it stands, sales rings are to remain closed and marts may facilitate online sales under the current restrictions.
Expressing his dismay, the Kerry TD said that “farmers are hurt”.
“It is clear that no cases happened in marts. The farmers will not be able to go in to sell their cattle; it is most unfair. This is even though not one single case happened in any mart,” the deputy said.
“Farmers are hurt because it is only a buyers’ sale and the sellers get no look-in.
They obeyed the rules. Other businesses that did not break any rules feel let down as well. These are an exception.
The deputy said this will mean a different of “€100 to €200 less” for farmers if the government stops them from going into the marts to sell their cattle.
He continued: “It is wrong. They [marts] were doing it in a way that was well-controlled.
“Managers accosted people and made them toe the line. Everything was run in a way that was perfect and impeccable. I am asking the Taoiseach to look at this again.”
‘Today was one of the toughest days I’ve put down since I became manager’
Meanwhile, in Healy-Rae’s own constituency, a mart manager has expressed how yesterday (Thursday, October 23) was “one of the toughest days I’ve put down”.
In a video posted on Facebook following a “disaster” of an online sale, Kenmare Co-op Mart’s manager and Kerry County Councillor Dan McCarthy expressed the pressure farmers are under due to Level 5 restrictions.
Since McCarthy took over as mart manager in 2004, he said yesterday was the toughest day he has put down.
“The staff, the farmers, the buyers that [were] involved in the sale today…it turned out to be what the department is doing with us in the mart is a total fiasco, a total disaster and it’s not right and fair.
To think that we, as farmers, will have to put up with this; no internet and having to bid online.
“I’m looking at a box up on the front of the stage all day long trying to get people to buy cattle and the internet went down when one man would bid.”
He said that the mart was running a show for the last number of months that included adequate social distancing and there was “no need to worry that Covid would come into any mart if they ran it the way we were running it”.
“I’m asking anyone that’s listening to me this evening to contact NPHET [National Public Health Emergency Team] and contact the Minister for Agriculture to please listen to the people that [are] on the frontline,” he continued.
“There are frontline workers in hospital; we’re frontline workers with the farmers.
There are farmers under stress, under frustration, and we’ll see a lot more happening with depression and suicide if this thing is not sorted within the next week or two.
“They cannot continue what is happening. We will have to leave 20 or 25 people into the ring to buy the cattle because this online thing is a complete and utter joke – it can’t work, it won’t work.