DEAR EDITOR,

One of the reasons I graze rocky outcrops and difficult land and have not abandoned it to Rhododendron Ponticum, which by the way is now regulated by legislation allowing prosecution of landowners, is the organic scheme.

I agree with Adam Woods’ comment in the Irish Farmers Journal recently that “many farmers in the west have switched [to organic], not because of the premium for their organic produce, but for the high financial supports and incentives offered to go organic”.

They are clasping a life buoy that might allow survival as livestock farmers given the inadequacies of ACRES and other supports.

I don’t however agree with Adam Woods’ comment that organic farming is a mere stepping stone to exit.