The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA) has expressed disappointment in the decision of Stena Line to withdraw its Rosslare to Cherbourg ferry service.

Stena Line confirmed yesterday (Monday, June 30) that its service between Rosslare and Cherbourg will cease from the end of September this year.

The company said the decision followed “an extensive review with the intention of strengthening the company’s investment in the Irish Sea, whilst delivering the most efficient use of the company’s resources".

“Our Rosslare – Cherbourg service is one that we will always be proud of, and we will continue to deliver the same high-quality service over the coming months," Johan Edelman, Stena Line trade director, said.

The chair of ICMSA Livestock Committee, Michael O’Connell, said that all stakeholders – exporters, shipping lines and the relevant government officials – must now come together to ensure that available replacement services were supported and without undue interruption to cattle exports.

O’Connell said there are other options currently in place and they must be facilitated in expanding their services if required.

“We must retain our route-to-market and ICMSA trusts that the relevant agencies are already on this and working at a contingency plan," he said.

Minster for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon has said that while the transport of live animals is "a private commercial activity", his department "is ready to assess and approve vessels that might be made available for transport of livestock on that route".

"I am acutely aware that this decision has the potential to cause difficulties for industry as a whole including the trade of live animals," he said.

According to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), 279,000 bovines were "intra-community traded" up to June 22, 2025.