DEAR EDITOR,

Harvest 2024 is proving to be the challenge tillage growers feared it might be. The unprecedented weather conditions last autumn, through the winter and spring have left a trail of woe on most winter cropping tillage farms like never before. A serious deficit of saleable tonnes is stark reality for most of this harvest. Every tillage grower is very conscious of how unsustainable the costs associated with growing crops have become. Yes, straw price has increased and if the €100/ha payment arrived it would help, but land rental increases and poor yields have wiped any hope of profit out of the system.

Climate change and environment challenges are drivers of agriculture policy. Despite all the promises and talk that the narrative needs to change, sticky plaster solutions with a raft of terms are all that’s offered. Research shows most of our grain is carbon neutral and the Climate Action Plan recognised its potential to reduce agriculture’s emissions. Still we cannot get any one of the State agencies to recognise Irish grain. It is the only produce coming off a mainstream agriculture sector denied an Irish recognition label.

From the highest authority down to the feed mills and end users, not one will put the Irish flag on it. It is deemed acceptable to throw our high-quality Irish grain in with cheap imported GMO feed, much of which is treated with EU-banned chemicals. It comes mainly from third world countries, some with disastrous environmental credentials. The disappointing fact is there is not a label, advertisement or promotion to make consumers aware of its presence in our food chain.

In my opinion, there is a conspiracy of silence by authorities including Bord Bia, Teagasc and the major farm organisations around what is coming in the boats. When over 5.5m tonnes of this GMO product is included without one single reference to its presence in any label, the question has to be asked, are our consumers being deceived?

The Food Vision report has some ideas of merit, but totally missed the importance of recognition of highly regulated Irish grain and pulses.