The EU-Mercosur free trade deal is among the key issues the newly re-elected leader of the ICSA will target in his second term.
SUBSCRIBER ONLYThe Westmeath farmer was reelected president of the drystock farmers’ association on Wednesday evening.
ICSA secretary general Hugh Farrell has said that the factories are in "desperation for numbers".
The ICSA’s national executive will vote on the association’s next president on Wednesday.
The meat industry umbrella group Meat Industry Ireland (MII) has also rejected the Mercosur deal.
The ICSA has criticised the need for farmers to have to provide a weighing scales during on-farm inspections.
MEPs have warned that the proposed deal, to allow for free trade between the EU and South American countries, could be split into two parts to speed up its approval through the European Union.
'This is a common-sense step at a time when excessive regulations are making it harder for farmers to stay in business,' the ICSA has said.
The ICSA said that only weight data recorded by ICBF technicians, which accounts for around 10% of total weights collected under SCEP, is used in the calculation of genetic evaluations.
A clampdown on fertiliser use on lower-stocked farms has been slated by the INHFA and ICSA.