ICOS President Edward Carr has urged Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon to inject urgency and decisiveness into negotiations which now begin in earnest to shape and fund CAP post-2027.

Carr was speaking yesterday as Minister Heydon chaired his first Agriculture and Fisheries (Agrifish) Council of Ireland’s EU Presidency in Brussels focussed on the European Commission’s Livestock Strategy and Protein plan, the EU fertiliser strategy and on advancing the role of women in agriculture.

“There are several critical issues facing farmers and co-operatives all at once. The onus is now on the Minister to drive the agenda decisively over these critical six months of the Irish EU Presidency”, Edward Carr said.

“We wish Minister Heydon well with the responsible position he now undertakes. The more farmers hear about the proposed changes to the CAP structure and the slashing of funds, the more worried they are becoming. As an Irish agriculture Minister, Mr. Heydon knows more than most the value of a robust, fully funded, inflation adjusted CAP to family farms. He along with other farm ministers must lead the defence of the CAP. That includes urging Taoiseach Michael Martin to put CAP and food security on the agenda for discussion at the next EU leaders’ summit in Dublin in November.”

“Minister Heydon has a golden opportunity to prioritise the issues which farmers on the ground are most concerned about. It’s disappointing therefore that neither the Commission, the Council or the Parliament are showing much understanding of the impact of CBAM on fertiliser prices. While we welcome the thrust of the fertiliser strategy, the elephant in the room that is CBAM remains unresolved.”

“I hope that over the next six months Minister Heydon can encourage sensible and workable solutions around Animal Transport and Animal Welfare legislation. Meanwhile the Nitrates Directive and Birds and Habitats directive need a major review, and I encourage the Minister to expedite these discussions.”

Mr. Carr said it is encouraging to see a focus on advancing the role, visibility and participation of women in Agriculture. “This is the international year of women in agriculture and rather than just nod to the slogan, all parts of agriculture including co-operatives need to be proactive in supporting and nurturing a stronger pathway for women and in particular young women into farming. It goes hand in hand with generational renewal strategies and we in ICOS support the Minister in whatever initiatives he is planning in this regard.”

He said these issues will form part of a major national conference that ICOS is organising for November as an accredited EU presidency event.

Following an address to MEPs in Brussels on Tuesday, Minister Heydon also met ICOS EU Affairs Manager, Damien O’Reilly, to discuss the co-operative body’s viewpoints.