The urgent government support called for by sheep farmers protesting outside the Dáil recently has not been delivered and better use could be made of the Brexit Adjustment Reserve (BAR) fund to address the issue, according to the newly appointed Sinn Féin agriculture and rural development spokesperson, Claire Kerrane.
Kerrane said that she met with the protesting sheep farmers and had raised their concerns with the Tánaiste.
“We would make use of the hard-fought for BAR fund which is specifically supposed to be for those sectors most impacted by Brexit. The sheep sector is an obvious one,” she said.
A farming background
Kerrane grew up and lives in the small west Roscommon village of Tibohine. Her dad, Gerry, is a farmer and her mother, Angela, is a primary school principal.
“We have a beef, suckler and sheep farm,” she said.
The policitician also has two brothers – one younger, one older and both farming – and one younger sister.
“We all helped out on the farm growing up and still do today, mainly at weekends now,” she said.
“We do lots of different jobs, feeding sheep and calves, forking in silage at the slats when cattle are in, more intensive work when we cut silage – we have two pits – we make a good bit of hay in the summer, footing turf… jobs like that.”
Kerrane went to the University of Galway and did an arts degree in English and politics.
“I then did a master’s in education for post-primary teaching,” she said.
Issues facing farmers
Kerrane first got involved with Sinn Féin in her late teens. “Mainly around the campaign to retain the A&E in Roscommon, which was probably the biggest campaign in the county,” she said.
When it comes to the pressing issues for farmers right now, Kerrane said that many farmers still aren’t getting a fair price for their produce which, she said, is of the highest quality.
“They do all the work and that isn’t reflected in their income in a lot of cases. Costs on the farmer are increasing, and some are just breaking even,” she said.
“If we want to sustain the family farm, income has to be there.
“More specifically, there are changes coming down the track on satellite mapping which I think may be problematic.
“Farmers who are now in the new ACRES (Agri Climate Rural Environment Scheme) still have no knowledge of what is expected of them as regards actions. This is a payment by results scheme which I think may be an issue down the line.
“There is a concern now for milk prices and this is going to be concerning for dairy farmers, who were previously incentivised to scale up by government.
“A major issue in the months ahead will be tackling climate change and what will be put on farmers to do their bit,” she added.
“Of course, farmers have always done their bit for nothing in return. They can and are willing to do more but the question will be: will that be recognised and will they be remunerated?
“If you take designated lands today as an example, holders of these lands are hugely restricted and yet, there is no longer a specific payment for designated lands. This is something that I will be keeping a close eye on and it will be a priority in my work.”
Fertiliser and forgotton farmers
“There is a long-running issue for young farmers and the forgotten farmers who missed out on income support. This is also something that needs to be rectified,” she continued
The cost of inputs such as fertiliser is also on Kerrane’s agenda.
“For over two years, the prices of fertilisers used in the agriculture sector have risen to levels never seen before and farmers in Ireland are paying above the EU average for fertiliser,” she said.
“We should be looking at the fertiliser supply coming into Europe. Currently the EU imposes anti-dumping tariffs on nitrogen fertiliser.
“This makes non-EU products more expensive on the EU market, and is designed to protect EU fertiliser producers.
“We fully appreciate the need to protect European business but if their profits, which are in the region of 40%, are resulting in farmers paying over the odds for their product then we need to curb it.
Turf
The Roscommon-Galway TD has campaigned for the continuation of domestic cutting rights.
“We cut turf and have done in my family for generations,” she said.
“Few are doing it for the fun of it. Anyone who has spent a day on the bog will know it’s hard work, but they do it because there is no affordable alternative.”
The rising cost of energy has, she said, been a cost increase along with others like fertiliser and feed that has put farmers under pressure.
“Costs to produce have been increasing and the price of produce for the farmer has not been at anywhere near the same rate,” she said.
Food insecurity is another area of concern for Kerrane, who thinks the war in Ukraine has exposed a fundamental weakness of food security policy at both a European and domestic level.
“It has exposed the hollowing out of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which in and of itself is clearly no longer capable of ensuring the availability of safe high-quality environmentally sustainable produce,” Kerrane contended.
“Over the past number of decades we have seen the proportion of the EU budget which the CAP comprises, reduce dramatically. We need to see Irish farmers getting their fair share of the European Crisis Reserve Fund immediately.
“In the longer term, if we are to meet our obligations on both climate and food security, Irish political voices should be united in pressing for a greatly expanded Common Agricultural Policy funding,” she said.
Rural living
Rural decline is another hot topic, and Kerrane believes that investment and infrastructure are key to reversing rural decline.
“That is why I introduced rural proofing legislation which the government is now working to introduce,” she said.
“Measures like that will help as for far too long decisions have been made behind desks in Dublin without any consideration for impact on rural Ireland. We also need to be getting our fair share of funding from central government and via the EU.
“In recent months, the west and northwest has been downgraded for a second time to now a lagging region because this region is at the bottom of the table for investment. We need to reverse this trend and that means positive discrimination for this region and its fair share of funding,” Kerrane said.
While in the past, she would have seen rural isolation as a challenge facing older people, particularly those who live alone and in remote areas, she now views it as also affecting young people.
“In many rural communities, the lack of amenities and social outlets also play a role in making rural isolation for young people more prevalent again,” she said, noting the affect rom Covid-19 too.
“That comes back to investing in rural areas so that amenities and services follow. That is the only way to sustain rural communities. Macra do great work in this area.”
Succession planning or the lack of it, is a concern for Kerrane. “I think much more can be done,” she said.
“I also believe we should be supporting more women into management roles on farms,” she said on this note.
“Traditionally in Ireland, the farm was left to the eldest son or shared among the sons. This has excluded women who have always played a key role in running the farm.
“Only 11% of farm managers in Ireland are women. The EU average is 28% and in some EU countries, it is as high as 45%.”
Breaking down the barriers which include access to land and finance, would pave the way for more women running farms, she said.