NEWS & EVENTS

Speaking from the Food Vision 2030 event held in Dublin Castle today, the President of ICMSA, Pat McCormack, said that the event perfectly illustrated what he called the Government’s fundamental misapprehension of the role and structure of Ireland’s farming and agri-food sector. Noting the ‘vision’ set out in the Government’s…

 Speaking after attending the most recent Bord Bia meeting, at which “frank and unvarnished opinions” were expressed on the issue of falling beef prices, ICMSA’s Livestock Chairperson, Des Morrison, said that his association did not accept that pressure on Sterling and the collapse of economic confidence in the UK was…

At a meeting with the Tanaiste today (Wednesday 5 Oct), ICMSA Deputy President, Denis Drennan, called for the Government’s policy on farming and agri-emissions to “reach out” to commercial family farms and cease what he called the useless and regressive ‘either/or’ approach between organic and commercial. Mr. Drennan explained that…

The President of ICMSA has said that Budget 2023 sends ‘mixed messages’ to the large numbers of farmers trying to invest in environmental improvements for their farms.  Pat McCormack said that while the accelerated capital allowances available for slurry storage was meant to give some momentum to those ready to…

Commenting, the President of ICMSA, Pat McCormack, said that the Government had made a “reasonable effort” to respond across a whole range of issues and that must be acknowledged.  But questions remained around whether the Government fully grasped the size of the contribution that agriculture was making to the national…

The Deputy President of ICMSA has called for the Eircode system of location-fixing to be extended beyond homes and businesses and into a national identification system for all land holdings.  Denis Drennan said that it was becoming more and more obvious that farmers needed access to digital area-identification system that…

Responding to the reported remarks of Green Party Minister of State, Pippa Hackett, in which she raised the possibility of livestock farmers introducing horses as a way of reducing emissions while supporting the equestrian sector, the President of ICMSA said that it appeared that the Minister of State was “on…

The Chairperson of ICMSA’s Livestock Committee has again pointed to what he described as the “bluntly suspicious” development that has beef prices either rising or stable all over Europe – except for Ireland. Des Morrison said that “yet again” Irish factories – uniquely in Europe – had managed to find…

The President of ICMSA has again criticised Minister McConalogue for what Pat McCormack says is a completely disingenuous message on the ‘voluntary’ nature of Government policy.  Citing remarks made by Minister McConalogue yesterday at the Tullamore Show in which the Minister was, again, quoted as saying that “no measure will…

The President of ICMSA, Pat McCormack, has flatly contradicted the statements of Government Ministers who continue to maintain that compulsory destocking of family farms need not happen and is not being sought. So far from that being the case, Mr McCormack said that such compulsory destocking has already begun and…