Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed must roll up his sleeves and make something happen to overcome the logjam on the live export of calves, according to IFA president Joe Healy.

Healy, who said there was a crisis for lairage space in Cherbourg, met with Minister Creed on Thursday on the need for urgent intervention.

Lairage space in Cherbourg is limited to just 4,000 calves/day. Minister Creed had hoped there would be space for 80,000 calves per month, provided Irish Ferries’ WB Yeats and Stena Line’s Horizon ran on alternate days to allow access to lairages on separate days of the week.

Logjam

However, both companies are planning to sail on the same days. This will result in the lairage space being idle some days and over-subscribed on other days, reducing live export capacity to just 48,000 head.

Healy said: “We have customers for our calves, but we cannot get them out of the country. We have calves, customers and lairage space. We also have shipping capacity, but it needs to be arranged properly to ensure maximum potential is achieved.”

Solutions

He stressed a solution could be found by pursuing four options:

  • Personal intervention with the ferry company to reconsider their sailing dates.
  • Explore the possibility of getting an approved livestock ship for special sailings.
  • Bring back into play a lairage facility that has been used in previous years.
  • Additional temporary lairage facilities at Cherbourg.

    • “The Minister and the Government must take a hands-on approach to this and find a solution immediately," Healy said.

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