Farmers Fed Up Listening to Empty Promises from Politicians – Time for Delivery

IFA President Joe Healy said beef farmers are fed up hearing empty promises from politicians about what they will do on Brexit.  “The reality is that Brexit has happened for beef farmers who have been hammered by financial losses. Commitments from the EU Commission and the Government to support farmers have amounted to nothing so far,” he said.

Speaking ahead of a protest at the Cabinet meeting in Cork on Wednesday, Joe Healy said farmers need a retrospective aid package to cover losses of €101m Brexit related beef price cuts.

The IFA President said the Government and the EU Commission must honour the commitments that they have made regarding Brexit losses.

“The ‘wait and see’ approach from Minister Creed is worn out with farmers. They can’t wait any longer and time is also running out for the Government,” he said.

The Cabinet is meeting at Blackrock Castle in Cork on Wed at 10am.  IFA will be sending a strong message to the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and his Government Ministers that beef farmers cannot be hung out to dry on Brexit.

IFA Livestock Chairman Angus Woods said the IFA has put a detailed set of proposals to both Minister Creed and Commissioner Hogan on the losses in the beef sector. “Minister Creed needs to make the beef issue and the Brexit losses his priority,” he said.

“We have met with the officials in the Department of Agriculture and the EU Commission and they accept that Irish beef farmers have incurred significant Brexit beef losses.”