Bryan tells Cowen farming is vital

The members of Cavan IFA had their new president to speak to them at their AGM in the Lavey Inn on Monday night. A capacity crowd turned out for the election of officers elected for the forthcoming year and to hear Mr. Bryan speak. The new officers are: president Paul Dowd, Ardamagh, Ballyhaise; chairman Jim O'Rourke, Tullyco, Cootehill; vice-chairman James Spears, Edelweiss, Poles; secretary Henry Smith, Corlea, Kingscourt; assistant: Elizabeth Tilson, Mullaghboy, Ballyheelan, Kilnaleck; treasurer Paddy Denning, Longfield, Stradone; PRO and Billy Reilly, Kilnacreeva, Ballyhaise. Mr. Bryan took a few minutes as the meeting started to talk to The Anglo-Celt about some of the most pressing issues facing farmers - you can read the full interview in next week's paper, and the first issue of the 2010 Farm Focus. Among the issues he discussed were government support for agriculture, which he told Taoiseach Brian Cowen would help drive Irish economy at a meeting last week. There, he stressed that the government should strongly defend the record of the CAP and the Single Farm Payment in the upcoming negotiations, and insist on the maintenance of a fully-funded budget for Ireland. "The Single Farm Payment post-2013 must be directed to supporting active farmers," Mr. Bryan said in an IFA statement. "Recent suggestions that Ireland might move away from the historical basis of the Single Farm Payment are not on. Farmers will not tolerate any reduction in their Single Farm Payment. "Farmers must continue to be rewarded for their multi-functional role of providing important non-market services including environmental protection, landscape management and animal welfare." On the need for regulation of retail multiples, Mr. Bryan said the food supply chain was broken. "Since 1995 farmers' costs of producing food has increased by over 50% and at the same time the price paid to farmers has dropped by 7%. The retail multiples and corporate greed are to blame and this must be addressed at national and European level. "We welcome the tánaiste's moves in this area to introduce a Code of Practice because action to rebalance the food supply chain is urgently required." The IFA president urged the taoiseach to introduce carbon tax at the same 4.4% rate for farm diesel as applies for road diesel. He also said there should be adequate credit supply and competitive interest rates for the agriculture sector, and the IFA will not allow the banks to put undue pressure on farmers. The IFA president said that there is no shortage of challenges facing the farming and agri-food sector. "However there are reasons for optimism - with a growing global demand for food and an increasing population. Agriculture can and will contribute to Ireland's economic recovery, but the government must do its job and back agriculture for the future."