Ahead of the next meeting of the Council of EU agriculture ministers on 14 March, Ireland has made a number of submissions relating to possible short-term measures to ease some of the current volatility in global commodity markets.

The submission by Ireland states that given the scale and duration of the current market downturn, new market measures, appropriately deployed, can help “to put a floor under current market prices and reduce the possibility of an already serious situation deteriorating further.”

However, the Irish government displays confidence in the ability of supply and demand to rebalance each other in the long term. "Commodity markets are cyclical and improved prices will return in due course. The EU’s meat and dairy sectors will benefit when the market upturn arrives. The challenge is to deploy measures that will mitigate the worst impacts of downward price volatility and help

farmers in the EU to survive this temporary trough," the Irish submission reads.

Measures for dairy sector

The standout recommendation from Ireland to help alleviate the dairy crisis is to increase the skimmed milk powder (SMP) intervention ceiling to 200,000 tonnes – effectively doubling the quanitites allowed into the scheme from its current limit of 109,000 tonnes. Ireland has also proposed that the buying-in period for intervention be pushed beyond the current deadline of 30 September to make intervention available right up to this time next year if necessary.

Interestingly, Ireland did stop short of seeking a rise in the intervention price level ahead of next month’s agriculture Council meeting. The submission states that "dairy markets should be kept under close review," taking account of market trends over the coming months with the reference threshold for intervention in mind.

Ireland has also requested of the EU Commission for the deferral of the 2016 and 2017 instalment payments due as part of our superlevy bill to be deferred for another year. Last year, Ireland secured agreement allowing member states to defer payment of the last superlevy bill for one year.

Ireland’s submission also calls for a reduction in the number of minimum storage days for product sent into private storage aid (PSA) as well as the removal of the 10% penalty if product is withdrawn from private storage before a year has passed.

Measures for pig sector

Ireland is also calling on the EU Commission to reopen the PSA scheme for pigmeat given the current downturn in pork prices. The submission states that the pig sector does not enjoy direct EU supports and therefore the market support tools available in times of extreme price volatility must be deployed when necessary.

Ireland also calls on the EU Commission to “continue and intensify its political, technical and diplomatic efforts to unlock the Russian market for EU pigmeat.” The closure of the Russian market to European pork has had a major downward effect on the market.

Other submissions

Ireland is also calling for an increase in de-minimis state aid levels. At present, farmers receiving CAP payments are deemed to be in receipt of state aid so there is an annual limit of €15,000 on any additional financial assistance they can receive from their home government.

In light of the negative impact of price volatility on small scale producers, Ireland is calling for the de minimis aid level to be increased incrementally over a three year period to €20,000 per farm.