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The IFA is to hold a protest outside a Cork sitting of the cabinet next Wednesday 1 May to demand a Brexit compensation package for farmers.
IFA president Joe Healy said that many beef farmers are facing financial ruin and IFA calculations showed that a €101m package was urgently needed.
“Farmers need a retrospective aid package to cover losses of €101m Brexit-related beef price cuts," he said.
A text to IFA members has asked them to meet at 10.30am to protest when the cabinet arrives in Blackrock Castle, Co Cork.
The figures were based on the period from 1 September 2018 to 23 March 2019 and compare cattle prices to 2015 as a benchmark for a period before Brexit uncertainty took hold.
The compensation is being sought as direct aid from the Government and the European Commission.
Compensation
The Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed has raised the issue of compensation as recently as last week with the European Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan.
The Minister said at the time: “I believe that the deployment of exceptional measures, to provide targeted aid to farm families who have suffered a sustained reduction in returns from the market, is warranted.”
However, Commissioner Hogan responded that member states must provide “evidence” of the detrimental extent Brexit had on prices before compensatory actions could be taken.
SHARING OPTIONS: