IFA president Joe Healy has said that strong action from the Government, through domestic and EU supports along with higher lamb prices from the factories, is needed to secure sheep farming into the future.

Together with IFA national sheep chair Sean Dennehy and sheep farmers from Connacht, Healy said: “I want to thank Tuam Mart for hosting us here today. The sheep sector is going through a very difficult period. Compared to 2018, this season’s lamb prices are down 43c/kg or €9 per lamb, mainly due to the impact of Brexit in the UK.”

The Teagasc national farm survey shows that incomes on sheep farms in 2018 were €13,297. Ewe numbers at 2.56m are down 86,000 head in the December 2018 sheep census.

Healy and Dennehy outlined a set of actions on prices and policy that are required to restore farm income and confidence back into the sheep sector.

The IFA is pushing for increased targeted payments for the sheep sector from both domestic funding and CAP supports. “The IFA is campaigning for targeted direct payments of €30 per ewe for sheep farmers.

“Through strong lobbying, the IFA secured funding of €25m per annum for the Sheep Welfare Scheme in 2017, worth €10 per ewe. Only €19m per annum is being drawn down. The IFA is proposing that Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed amends the scheme and provides more options and funding for farmers to increase the payment to €15 per ewe for 2020 and also extend and enhance the scheme for future years.”

On CAP, Healy said Minister Creed must fully protect the CAP budget and secure an increase to cover inflation and any extra costs on farmers. He has to start with reversing the €97m cut proposed for Ireland. “The CAP Strategic Plan for Ireland must prioritise vulnerable sectors like sheep. Coupled payments, as well as targeted eco schemes, must be considered in Pillar I”.

Rural development

On the Rural Development Programme in Pillar II, the IFA president said sheep farming makes a significant socio-economic and environmental contribution to rural areas and especially in hill and mountainous regions, where other types of farming are not possible.

“The IFA has proposed a €10,000 environmental scheme in the new CAP with higher payments for designated and commonage land, as well as increased funding for Areas of Natural Constraint (ANCs).”

On prices and the market, Dennehy said lamb prices need to rise and access to the Chinese market is critical. He called on Minister Creed to prioritise this on his visit to China this week. “Access to China has dramatically increased lamb prices in New Zealand and Australia over recent months.”

On trade deals, Dennehy said: “Having messed up on the Mercosur deal for beef, the European Commission cannot contemplate another bad trade deal on agriculture with New Zealand and Australia, which already have access for a massive combined volume of 247,440t of lamb imports into the EU market.

“Lamb supplies are tightening and factories need to increase prices. Some factories had imposed severe weight and fat penalties and others had enforced excessive charges, which are ‘way over the top.”

Dennehy said the IFA is demanding that the factories introduce a strong quality assurance bonus of 30c/kg on lamb as the current general 10c/kg to 15c/kg QA top-up is inadequate to cover the cost and bureaucracy involved at farm level.

He said this would also boost farmer participation in the scheme, which is flagging.

The Irish sheepmeat industry generates an output value of €485m per annum which supports in excess of 34,000 sheep farmers, and thousands more jobs in related industry services.

Ireland’s national sheep flock totals 2.56m breeding sheep. Lowland enterprises account for 55% of the ewe population, with the remainder on hill farms. The four major sheep production counties are all along the western seaboard: Donegal, Mayo, Galway and Kerry. These are followed by Wicklow and Roscommon.

During 2018, exports accounted for almost 70% of Irish sheepmeat production, reaching a total of 56,000t, valued at approximately €315m. The UK and France remain key markets for Irish sheepmeat, accounting for 58% of volumes in 2018. However, in recent years, the sector has been diversifying into markets such as Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland.