The European Commissioner for Agriculture will be left in no doubt that Irish farmers need certainty on the long-term direction of agricultural policy at EU level, the IFA president has said.

It will be made “quite clear” to Commissioner for Agriculture Christophe Hansen when he visits Ireland on Thursday 23 January that farmers need a five-to-10-year plan on policy areas such as the nitrates derogation and CAP, Francie Gorman said.

“The idea that policy can be changed after two years is not good enough. You need to be able to look a minimum of five to 10 years down the road, to give farmers certainty.

“When you see a derogation [mid-term] review after two years or a mid-term review of CAP after two years again, that gives no certainty to farmers,” he said. Gorman was speaking on Wednesday, the first day of the IFA’s annual general meeting (AGM), ahead of Commissioner Hansen’s address to the AGM on Thursday.

Meanwhile, a stance on solar panels on agricultural land is causing considerable debate and robust conversations within the IFA.

Responding to questions, Gorman said the issue was discussed at the IFA’s last national council meeting “with no decision made on it”.

The Government needs to decide whether it wants to prioritise food or energy production, Gorman said.

However, he added that in general national council members respect farmers’ freedom “to do what they want with their own land”.