Westmeath IFA members Enda Burke and Mervyn Waters at the IFA picket outside the Dept of Agriculture buildings in Kildare Street, Dublin, where they sent a clear message to Minister Charlie McConalogue that the delay in payments and changes to the current nitrate regulations are not acceptable and need to be re-negotiated.

Dairy farmers ‘feel betrayed’ by nitrates decision

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The IFA National Dairy chair Stephen Arthur has said dairy farm families feel betrayed by Minister McConalogue and the government following the decision on the nitrates derogation.

“I have spoken to many dairy farmers since this was announced and a feeling of shock and betrayal is the mood out there,” Mr Arthur said.

“Most who are in derogation are farming small to average size farms and this is going to make many of them unviable unless they can find expensive land to rent – land they actually don’t require other than for nitrates calculation purposes.”

The IFA man contends that in the last 10 years, dairy farmers have followed government policy and invested on their farms. Now a change in policy will leave a generation of family farms facing a serious threat to their viability, he said.

“The lack of support from the government is startling. Derogation farmers have had ever more stringent rules imposed on them, the latest being banding at the start of 2023.

“Instead of allowing time for the new measures to take effect and work with farmers on the journey to improving water quality, this blunt instrument is being imposed.

“There was no consultation when the Department of Agriculture agreed to this mid-term review and Teagasc have indicated it will result in negligible if any improvements for water,” Mr Arthur maintained.

“Dairy farmers are now left with a large drop in their incomes due to changes forced on them. No other sector in society would be asked to take a cut in their income such as this.”

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