Farmers at Carnew Mart’s second weanling show and sale on Wednesday evening shared their views on Tuesday’s budget announcements, the 10% Mica levy, ACRES spaces and the cattle trade.
Tom Roche, Gorey, Wexford - sucklers
Suckler farmer Tom Roche farms outside Gorey, Co Wexford, and was at Carnew Mart on Wednesday.
“They haven’t looked after the farmers at all really and you know the farmer, with all our carbon credits and all that we have, we’re getting nothing for it. If we put on solar panels on our roof, we’re not getting anything for it.
“We all shouldn’t have to pay for other people’s mistakes. [The 10% Mica levy] is going to cripple the building for a lot of lads. It’s going to finish the building.
"Luckily enough, I’ve modernised the farm enough for what I want to do at the moment. I could do more, but I’ll hold off until things come down.
“It wasn’t worth my while going into the REAP scheme and I don’t think this new ACRES scheme is going to do much for me either. I’ve to talk to my Teagasc adviser to see will it suit me or not.”
Tony Allen, Tramore, Waterford - bull beef
Bull beef finisher Tony Allen farms in Tramore, Co Waterford.
“The 10% levy on the blocks, farmers doing a lot of building, concrete slabs, sheds, all that, why would another 10% be doled on them when someone else made the mistake? It’s dear enough as it is.
“I wouldn’t be interested [in ACRES]. There’s too much paper work, I definitely wouldn’t.
"I was in the others going back and, to be honest, it’s a minefield at the end of the day. What you’d get out of it isn’t enough for the restrictions you have when you’re involved in it. No, I won’t be going into it anyway.
“With the rules and regulations coming down the road, the nitrates and all that, the biodiversity and all that, it’s going to get tighter and tighter. It’s year to year at the minute.
“Last year was a different year [weanling bull] price-wise. Next year, April, May, we’ll know where we are. But look, you have to be positive with what you can do.”
Pauric Redmond, Clonegal, Wexford - sheep and tillage
Sheep and tillage farmer Pauric Redmond was at Carnew Mart on Wednesday.
“The [10% Mica levy] is wrong because the farmer, the people that’s going to be building, they didn’t create that problem. It was the quarries, that was the quarry’s problem.
"They say a house is going to go up an extra €2,000 and it’ll surely affect farmers because you have farmers building there the whole time. It’s surely going to affect them. It’s going to add to it all.
“I definitely think myself that they should extend these climate targets. They shouldn’t force it in the short term, they should give lads more time.
“The way farming is gone there over the last 10 or 15 years, sure the young people, a lot of them have to have a job as well and sure that’s working out for them, which is a good thing to see.
"If we depended totally on farming, for a lot of young people it wouldn’t work out because it wouldn’t be enough in it for them.
“It was a good year on the tillage though, a very good year, one of the really good years to be honest about it.
"We sowed barley oats, wheat, beans, sure all them crops. The beans turned out well as well, up to 3t/acre, we couldn’t get over it.
“Some farmers bought fertiliser early and got it cheap enough, €700, they were the lucky lads. They’d the money to buy it. Not everyone is in that situation.”
Dylan Malone, Carlow - beef
“There’s nothing in [the budget] the way everything is gone for fertiliser, everything, the price of meal.
“[The 10% Mica levy] is madness too. The price of building sheds, everything, it’s only gone one way.
“[The cattle are] dear, €3.00/kg everything is. We’re buying Limousin, Charolais, the 400kg stores is what we’re buying and we’ll finish them out of the sheds then over the winter.
“I wasn’t minding that ACRES now to be honest. I don’t know what’s in it at all.”
Farmers at Carnew Mart’s second weanling show and sale on Wednesday evening shared their views on Tuesday’s budget announcements, the 10% Mica levy, ACRES spaces and the cattle trade.
Tom Roche, Gorey, Wexford - sucklers
Suckler farmer Tom Roche farms outside Gorey, Co Wexford, and was at Carnew Mart on Wednesday.
“They haven’t looked after the farmers at all really and you know the farmer, with all our carbon credits and all that we have, we’re getting nothing for it. If we put on solar panels on our roof, we’re not getting anything for it.
“We all shouldn’t have to pay for other people’s mistakes. [The 10% Mica levy] is going to cripple the building for a lot of lads. It’s going to finish the building.
"Luckily enough, I’ve modernised the farm enough for what I want to do at the moment. I could do more, but I’ll hold off until things come down.
“It wasn’t worth my while going into the REAP scheme and I don’t think this new ACRES scheme is going to do much for me either. I’ve to talk to my Teagasc adviser to see will it suit me or not.”
Tony Allen, Tramore, Waterford - bull beef
Bull beef finisher Tony Allen farms in Tramore, Co Waterford.
“The 10% levy on the blocks, farmers doing a lot of building, concrete slabs, sheds, all that, why would another 10% be doled on them when someone else made the mistake? It’s dear enough as it is.
“I wouldn’t be interested [in ACRES]. There’s too much paper work, I definitely wouldn’t.
"I was in the others going back and, to be honest, it’s a minefield at the end of the day. What you’d get out of it isn’t enough for the restrictions you have when you’re involved in it. No, I won’t be going into it anyway.
“With the rules and regulations coming down the road, the nitrates and all that, the biodiversity and all that, it’s going to get tighter and tighter. It’s year to year at the minute.
“Last year was a different year [weanling bull] price-wise. Next year, April, May, we’ll know where we are. But look, you have to be positive with what you can do.”
Pauric Redmond, Clonegal, Wexford - sheep and tillage
Sheep and tillage farmer Pauric Redmond was at Carnew Mart on Wednesday.
“The [10% Mica levy] is wrong because the farmer, the people that’s going to be building, they didn’t create that problem. It was the quarries, that was the quarry’s problem.
"They say a house is going to go up an extra €2,000 and it’ll surely affect farmers because you have farmers building there the whole time. It’s surely going to affect them. It’s going to add to it all.
“I definitely think myself that they should extend these climate targets. They shouldn’t force it in the short term, they should give lads more time.
“The way farming is gone there over the last 10 or 15 years, sure the young people, a lot of them have to have a job as well and sure that’s working out for them, which is a good thing to see.
"If we depended totally on farming, for a lot of young people it wouldn’t work out because it wouldn’t be enough in it for them.
“It was a good year on the tillage though, a very good year, one of the really good years to be honest about it.
"We sowed barley oats, wheat, beans, sure all them crops. The beans turned out well as well, up to 3t/acre, we couldn’t get over it.
“Some farmers bought fertiliser early and got it cheap enough, €700, they were the lucky lads. They’d the money to buy it. Not everyone is in that situation.”
Dylan Malone, Carlow - beef
“There’s nothing in [the budget] the way everything is gone for fertiliser, everything, the price of meal.
“[The 10% Mica levy] is madness too. The price of building sheds, everything, it’s only gone one way.
“[The cattle are] dear, €3.00/kg everything is. We’re buying Limousin, Charolais, the 400kg stores is what we’re buying and we’ll finish them out of the sheds then over the winter.
“I wasn’t minding that ACRES now to be honest. I don’t know what’s in it at all.”
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