Tipperary farming: Teagasc report highlights profitability challenges, says IFA

The publication of the Teagasc National Farm Survey 2017 Sustainability Report, while recording improved economic returns in dairying, once again highlights the profitability challenges of vulnerable sectors including livestock and tillage.

“All too often in the sustainability debate, the climate and the environment take precedence. It is difficult for farmers to continue to be green while they’re in the red. In this context, the Teagasc sustainability report must be welcomed,” he said.

The report, published this Tuesday, while showing overall increases in GHG emissions, also highlighted the fact that emissions per kilo of output was decreasing, as output increased and efficiency improved, he said.

This emission-efficient grass-based model of food production provided a solid platform for the sustainable development of Ireland’s agriculture, especially in the context increasing global demand for the types of sustainably produced food Ireland had to offer, said Mr Healy

He called on the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action and the Government, when preparing their Action Plan, to support the full implementation of the Teagasc Climate Road Map, rather than increasing costs and taxes on the sector.

Meanwhile, ICSA president Patrick Kent said that the report had blown apart the narrative that suckler and beef farmers were the problem on climate change.

“The suckler herd is clearly not the problem when cattle farming systems produce less than half the emissions of intensive dairy farming systems per hectare. This revelation means that where a hectare of land is switched from sucklers to intensive dairy, GHG emissions double," he said.

ICSA had been arguing for a long time that cattle and sheep farmers should not be the scapegoats for climate change challenges. For too long, there had been a veil of silence over the outrageous blame game directed at its members - extensive cattle and sheep farmers - whereby statistics were massaged to make it look like suckler farming, in particular, had to carry the burden of adjustment, said Mr Kent.

“While there is no doubt that all sectors have to do their bit in being more efficient in terms of emissions, it is now time for all to recognise that cattle, sheep and tillage systems give rise to between two and 4.2 tonnes CO2/ha compared with 8.5 tonnes for intensive dairy. This has serious implications for policy. It calls into question the long standing advice to cattle and sheep farmers to intensify and expand output," he said.

Mr Kent said that ICSA had continuously questioned that advice because in the beef sector, increased output did nothing except drive down prices. Even worse, it led to the sort of price gouging where surplus supplies were leading to cuts on bull beef producers where the most arbitrary weight limits were used to stop farmers getting a fair price.

"We need to be marketing suckler beef as a speciality high value product. It now emerges that a hectare of land devoted to suckler beef is far lower in emissions than intensive dairying. Suckler farmers and suckler beef finishers are sick and tired of bearing the brunt of adverse and ill-informed commentary on climate change while at the same time being used and abused to advertise all beef," said the ICSA president.

He pointed out that ICSA was the only recognised farm organisation that was 100% unequivocally in favour of targeting PGI (Protected Geograpical Indication) status at low intensity, speciality suckler beef.

"It is now time that we abandon any plans to market all beef as one generic and thereby cheap commodity product. It is now time to focus efforts on getting exclusive PGI status for suckler beef with a view to delivering a premium and economically viable price for our sucklers," he said.

He welcomed the information in the Teagasc Sustainability report and ICSA wanted to see this recognition of the low emissions from suckler and sheep sectors used for the benefit of members in terms of marketing beef.

"We also want to see the lower per hectare emissions from the cattle, sheep and tillage sectors rewarded in the CAP reform,” he said.