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Committees

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Executive Committee

Executive Committee

The President of the Association chairs the Executive Committee which is responsible for the day-to-day finances, expenditure and general management in co-ordination with the General Secretary. The Committee functions in the same manner as a board of directors and is comprised of 10 members, including the President and Deputy President, drawn from the four ICMSA regions and elected on a three-year term by the National Council.

Dairy Committee

Dairy Committee

The Dairy Committee is the Association’s ‘flagship’ Committee covering – as it does – all aspects of the Irish dairy sector but principally the question of the price of milk paid to our members supplying the Co-op processors. ICMSA was founded on the basis of ensuring that every milk processor pays its farmer suppliers the highest possible milk price every month consistent with the viability of the farmer and milk processor. ICMSA is now and always will be considered as the ‘voice’ of Irish dairy farmers and we possess and continue to develop an expertise in every aspect of Irish dairy. ICMSA’s commitment to ensuring a high and proportionate milk price will never waver and as part of our commitment to transparency we developed an Interactive Milk Price Tracker that is now carried and recognised by independent sources like Agriland as the industry standard measure.

Noel Murphy is the current Chairperson of our Dairy Committee, having been elected for his first three-year term in December 2021.  Please click here for members of the Dairy Committee.

Farm and Rural Affairs Committee

Farm & Rural Affairs Committee

The Farm & Rural Affairs Committee deals with the multiple and increasingly critical areas around farmers and the environment. These include Water Services, Nitrate Regulations, Environment Issues and Climate Change and agri-related Emissions.  ICMSA monitor activities in all these areas and contributes to Government policy through our active membership and lobbying on the various state bodies involved in the sector. Recently our efforts have been aimed at mitigating the worst excesses of overly restrictive and spurious legislation and regulation. The present Chairperson of the Farm & Rural Affairs Committee is Eamon Carroll who was elected for his first three-year term in December 2023.  Please see here for members of the Committee.

Farm Business Committee

Farm Business Committee

The Farm Business Committee focuses on all aspects of finance relating to farming and agriculture. Topics include Budgets & Income Tax, Succession, Incorporation, Banking and Finance Issues, Debt and Debt-restructuring including Vulture funds and the legal positions around them. Every year, the Farm Business Committee makes a Pre-Budget Submission to the Department of Finance outlining those various measures ICMSA has identified as being necessary and desirable for the competitiveness and economic wellbeing of Irish agriculture.

Pat O’Brien is Chairperson of the Farm Business Committee having been elected in December 2023. Please click here to see the members of the Farm Business Committee.

Livestock Committee:

Livestock Committee:

The Livestock Committee focuses on the livestock side of the Irish agri sector and monitors carefully the prices paid in the UK, Europe and most importantly in Ireland, on a comparative basis aimed at ensuring that a fair price is returned to farmers for our quality product. To that end, ICMSA was the first farm organisation to criticise the current Beef Grid and declare that it is unfit for purpose. That was our position immediately after it was introduced and it remains our position. It’s worth noting that that sentiment is now widely shared by others who originally supported the current Grid upon its unveiling. 

The Committee along with the Dairy Committee also focuses on animal health to maintain the highest level of quality by reducing and hopefully eradicating on farm diseases such as BVD, TB and IBR. Michael O’Connell is the Chairperson of the Livestock Committee having been elected in December 2023.

Please click here to see members of the Livestock Committee.