Farmers’ frustration at the restructuring of Pillar I payments under the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) was evident at a mart visit by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue today, Tuesday, October 26.

As part of the minister’s ‘Cap Consultation Tour’, Minister McConalogue visited both Granard Mart, Co. Longford, and Ballyjamesduff Mart, Co. Cavan, today.

At Granard Mart, representatives from the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA), Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA), Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA), as well as the Individual Farmers tractor protest group, were present to give their views on the CAP reform.

Interestingly, all the farm lobby groups in attendance seemed to be united in their calls – often referring to statements from other lobby groups and agreeing with what a each representative group was saying, with no blatant differences in their concerns or demands.

While CAP reform was the planned topic of discussion at today’s event in Granard, the recently announced carbon budgets were also discussed and many farmers voiced their frustration to Minister McConalogue that agriculture was being ‘unfairly targeted’.

On the CAP reform, the changes being made to Pillar I were the issues that came under the most scrutiny – in particular, the eligibility criteria for the Pillar I eco-scheme in order for a farmer to secure 25% of their Pillar I basic payment – that they had originally been securing under Greening.

Minister McConalogue was steadfast in his responses that the eligibility criteria will be workable for farmers, while spokespersons from the farm lobby groups unanimously agreed the criteria would be “not farmer friendly” and would be “unworkable” for most.

The ICSA’s Edmund Graham outlined that Pillar II options in the CAP offered “nothing” in terms of support for beef finishers, however Minister McConalogue’s response was that the ICSA’s proposal was to take a cut from all farmers’ Pillar I payments and give it back to suckler and sheep farmers.

The IFA’s livestock chairperson, Brendan Golden stressed to Minister McConalogue that farmers “are having to do more to get their own money back” under the new CAP.

He also outlined that the CAP will “put a big hole in many beef finishers and suckler farmers’ pockets” and called on the minister to examine ways to “get money back” to these farmers.