The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, is scheduled to meet with TDs and senators from the Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine, this morning (Thursday, July 25) to discuss the "impending fodder crisis" and other key issues.

Both Houses of the Oireachtas are currently in recess but committee's decision to convene a meeting during the month of July highlights the level of debate currently underway in relation to Minister McConalogue's proposal to seek a deferral of the 2024 Straw Incorporation Measure (SIM) from the European Commission.

The Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) and the Irish Grain Growers’ Group (IGGG) have jointly called for the minister to reverse his decision to suspend SIM and also urged the Taoiseach to intervene if necessary.

Fine Gael Senator Tim Lombard requested that the Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine meet urgently in order to discuss directly with the minister "critical issues" that farmers are currently facing.

It is understood the meeting will cover not just ongoing fodder concerns but also fertiliser allowance and if there is any strategy for importation of straw.

Minister McConalogue's decision to seek a deferral of the 2024 SIM has not been publicly supported by either of his ministerial colleagues.

Minister of State, Martin Heydon, said that he did not agree with the proposal to suspend the SIM this year and highlighted that the SIM had been “incredibly well received by tillage farmers since its introduction in 2021”.

He also said the measure has allowed farmers “to build organic stocks in their soil in addition to providing an important financial support”

Meanwhile Minister of State at DAFM with special responsibility for land use and biodiversity, Pippa Hackett, also confirmed that she had no prior warning of the decision and would not have supported the proposal if she had been consulted about it.

According to Senator Victor Boyhan, who is a member of the Oireachtas Committee, there is an "awful lot of confusion as to what’s happening on the ground in relation to SIM".

"Tillage farmers are furious at the conflicting views come from agriculture house – clarity is what TDs and senators will be seeking when they meet the minister," he added.