The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association (ICMSA) has announced the agenda for its upcoming annual general meeting (AGM).

The ICMSA event will be held on Monday 2 December in the Radisson Blu Hotel, Limerick.

Commenting on the lineup and agenda, association president Denis Drennan said that using farmer feedback, the agenda and tone of the AGM will be “for farmers, by farmers” with political and non-farming input to be kept to a minimum.

“It’s time that we heard from those individuals and organisations charged with directly developing and strategising for the Irish farm sector and the wider agri-food sector,” he said.

“Conor Galvin, chief executive of Ornua, will speak on the dairy market outlook and whether we’ll see the recent rally carry through to ‘peak production’ in 2025 and beyond.

"We also expect to hear what Ornua’s plans are in the event of the introduction of the tariffs threatened by the incoming [US president-elect Donald] Trump administration.”

Limited spaces

The ICMSA has urged farmers who are interested in attending to call 061-314677 or email info@icmsa.ie to indicate intention to attend.

There will be a limit on the number of spaces for people who wish to attend.

“The venue is excellent and I’d urge members to travel if possible and join us - and participate in - what promises to be another great ICMSA event,” Drennan added.

“Brendan Gleeson, secretary general of the Department of Agriculture, Food & Marine, has kindly accepted our invitation to speak to the AGM and his theme is ‘Key farm policy issues to 2030’, where he will outline what the Department believe[s] will be the key policy changes facing Irish farmers over the next six years.

“It’s also fair to say that there’s a lot of farmers with questions about the efficacy and relevance of Bord Bia’s schemes and we are confident that Jim O’Toole, Bord Bia chief executive, will be able to field those and throw some light on some of the more controversial areas.”

Agenda