Heydon urged to 'inject urgency and decisiveness' into CAP negotiations
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon has been urged to "inject urgency and decisiveness" into Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) negotiations.
Irish Co-operative Organisation Society (ICOS) president Edward Carr spoke this week as Minister Heydon chaired his first meeting of the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council (AgriFish) under the Irish EU presidency.
Carr said: "There are several critical issues facing farmers and co-operatives all at once.
"The onus is now on the minister to drive the agenda decisively over these critical six months of the Irish EU presidency.
“We wish Minister Heydon well with the responsible position he now undertakes."
Defence of CAP
Carr said the more farmers heard about the proposed changes to the post-2027 CAP structure and the "slashing of funds", the more worried they are becoming.
"As an Irish agriculture minister, Heydon knows more than most the value of a robust, fully-funded, inflation-adjusted CAP to family farms," the ICOS president continued.
"He along with other farm ministers must lead the defence of the CAP.
"That includes urging Taoiseach Micheál Martin to put CAP and food security on the agenda for discussion at the next EU leaders’ summit in Dublin in November."
'Golden opportunity'
Carr said Minister Heydon has a "golden opportunity" to prioritise the issues which farmers on the ground are most concerned about.
He said it is "disappointing" the EU institutions including the commission and parliament are not "showing much understanding" of the impact of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on fertiliser prices.
"While we welcome the thrust of the fertiliser strategy, the elephant in the room that is CBAM remains unresolved," Carr said.
The ICOS president said that over the next six months, he hopes Minister Heydon can also "encourage sensible and workable solutions around animal transport and animal welfare legislation".
Carr said the Nitrates Directive along with the Birds and Habitats Directives "need a major review, and I encourage the minister to expedite these discussions".
Women in agriculture
Carr also said it is encouraging to see a focus on advancing the role, visibility and participation of women in agriculture.
He acknowledged that the United Nations has declared 2026 the International Year of the Woman Farmer.
"Rather than just nod to the slogan, all parts of agriculture including cooperatives need to be proactive in supporting and nurturing a stronger pathway for women and in particular young women into farming," Carr said.
"It goes hand in hand with generational renewal strategies and we in ICOS support the minister in whatever initiatives he is planning in this regard."
Following an address to MEPs in Brussels this week, Minister Heydon also met ICOS EU affairs manager Damien O’Reilly, to discuss the cooperative body’s viewpoints.
ICOS said the issues it has outlined will form part of a major national conference it is organising for November as an accredited EU presidency event.
