The convening of the National Fodder and Food Security Committee must kick start an emergency response to the ongoing difficulties facing farmers as heavy rainfall continues, ICSA president Sean McNamara has said.

A meeting of the fodder committee has been convened by Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue and is taking place on Friday 29 March at 11am.

McNamara said that as fodder reserves are dwindling fast, the committee needs to rapidly reassess the current situation on the ground, including the extent of the fodder shortages and the impact of continued wet weather on farming operations.

Crops, he added, are not going in the ground and cattle cannot be put out to graze due to saturated ground conditions.

Financial pressure

"All this is causing enormous stress and is putting serious financial pressure on farm families. The situation is dire; it can no longer be ignored, and it will require a rapid emergency response. Ensuring the resilience of farms and the well-being of farm families in the coming weeks is paramount," he said.

McNamara argued that the inability of drystock farmers to access credit is a major factor in the current crisis also.

"The reality is we have a financial crisis as well as a fodder crisis. If farmers need to access credit in order to feed livestock, then there needs to be flexibility shown from lenders and co-ops alike. The Government needs to get real on securing greater flexibility on short term finance for all farmers.

"The time for talking around the difficulties facing farmers is over and we want to see real action in the form of initiatives that will offer immediate assistance to farmers. This must include guarantees around access to short-term credit for all farmers, the provision of emergency meal vouchers, the establishment of a fodder support scheme, and the curtailment of inspections," he said.