The new agriculture minister

brianthebard

So every other relevant forum (and some non relevant) have threads on this; why not farming?

What do ye all make of the new appointment of Coveney to agriculture? Personally I don't see what qualifications he has for the position, perhaps he may be better than Coughlan but that's not saying much. Most of the talk surrounding argiculture during the election was about agribusiness, do you think his politics means he will have a better/unique position on this that can help the farmers of the country?

thats interesting

He's probably the most qualified.
First he went to Gurteen Ag College, then he went to England to get a degree in Agricultural science and he has some related qualification from UCC. I think he also spent time farming for a bit too.

He'll be very good as Minister.

irishh_bob

always found coveny to be a gormless and unimpressive TD

Casinoking

brianthebard wrote: »

So every other relevant forum (and some non relevant) have threads on this; why not farming?

What do ye all make of the new appointment of Coveney to agriculture? Personally I don't see what qualifications he has for the position, perhaps he may be better than Coughlan but that's not saying much. Most of the talk surrounding argiculture during the election was about agribusiness, do you think his politics means he will have a better/unique position on this that can help the farmers of the country?

He's certainly the most qualified Minister for Agriculture I can remember, as has already been mentioned, and there was no-one else jumping out for the job

whelan1

if we could get our discussion group payment this week i would say he is great:)

ihatetractors

Eu runs Ag in Ireland, What minister is there to impose their will is irrlevant realy

reilig

ihatetractors wrote: »

Eu runs Ag in Ireland, What minister is there to impose their will is irrlevant realy

Well if he only attends the EU agriculture ministers meetings he will be ahead of the last guy anyway!!

MidlandsM

irishh_bob wrote: »

always found coveny to be a gormless and unimpressive TD

god no, I always found him to be an informed, educated, intelligent man and articulate to when talking to the media. I think he'll serve the industry well.

alleyb

i hope he'll do well , i think he'll be a capable minister ,as long as the big farmers don't form his knowledge and thinking, remember ag degree is a plus but doesn't necessary guarantee a great minister. but 2 annoying things he does that may distract him, tweeting :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes: and yachts:rolleyes:

irishh_bob

MidlandsM wrote: »

god no, I always found him to be an informed, educated, intelligent man and articulate to when talking to the media. I think he'll serve the industry well.

hes not a particulary confident speaker , slow , dull and slow on his feet IMO

Casinoking

irishh_bob wrote: »

hes not a particulary confident speaker , slow , dull and slow on his feet IMO

Bertie, of course, is top of a list of politicians who were the complete opposite. And we all know how well they served the people they were charged with representing.

brianthebard

thats interesting wrote: »

He's probably the most qualified.
First he went to Gurteen Ag College, then he went to England to get a degree in Agricultural science and he has some related qualification from UCC. I think he also spent time farming for a bit too.

He'll be very good as Minister.

I was not aware of that and thanks for the information. I hope for the sake of Irish farmers that he will be a useful minister, although I don't personally think of him as a particularly good politician.

What do you think of all the talk of agribusiness during the election, what can he deliver there?

Corsendonk

Not to forget the appointment of Shane McEntee to Junior Minister for Food, Horticulture and Food Safety. Wiki says he is an ex-farmer and former agriculture sales representative. Does anyone know what type of farming he did?

whelan1

they had a big dairy farm near nobber in meath , mitchelstown farm , his brother is gerry mc entee of meath football fame

MidlandsM

irishh_bob wrote: »

hes not a particulary confident speaker , slow , dull and slow on his feet IMO

ahhh come on ,he's none of the above, I think you have a grudge.....are you pissed FF did'nt get back in power eventho' they grossly mismanaged and sold out the country and sh1t on generations to come?

whelan1

after having brendan smith and mary coughlan i think simon coveney will do well in agriculture

MidlandsM

whelan1 wrote: »

after having brendan smith and mary coughlan i think simon coveney will do well in agriculture

put like that, yes.

Usually the saying is from BAD to WORSE, with going from Coughlan to Smith, its was WORSE to BAD!

5live

As a kerryman, i am delighted a corkman got the job. There is one thing cork farmers arent and that is silent when there is an issue to be resolved in agriculture. I am, however a bit concerned about his family connections with the agrifood sector. Our last cork minister had similar issues which, imo, compromised his impartiality. As to his alleged 'speaking impediments' mentioned previously, i for one would be quite happy if he stayed quiet and did his job rather than spouting inane nonsense and getting his picture taken with a bunch of half dressed models while opening a bag of crisps. Just my 2c worth.:)

irishh_bob

Corsendonk wrote: »

Not to forget the appointment of Shane McEntee to Junior Minister for Food, Horticulture and Food Safety. Wiki says he is an ex-farmer and former agriculture sales representative. Does anyone know what type of farming he did?

ive relatives in meath east , mc entee was well rewarded for his defense of enda during the heave last summer , agriculture will suit him but the man is a woefull public speaker

irishh_bob

MidlandsM wrote: »

ahhh come on ,he's none of the above, I think you have a grudge.....are you pissed FF did'nt get back in power eventho' they grossly mismanaged and sold out the country and sh1t on generations to come?

i voted FG and FG only

funny man

What dose a minister have to do to be classed as a good minister?

whelan1

OUT OF INTEREST WHO WAS THE LAST JUNIOR MINISTER FOR FOOD , WAS THERE ONE ?

5live

whelan1 wrote: »

OUT OF INTEREST WHO WAS THE LAST JUNIOR MINISTER FOR FOOD , WAS THERE ONE ?

I believe one Trevor Sargent was minister for organic food before a little indescretion meant he was replaced by another green? Wee Trevor fairly neglected the non organic portion of his portfolio before he left. Was it Ciaran Cuffe that replaced him?

Corsendonk

5live wrote: »

I believe one Trevor Sargent was minister for organic food before a little indescretion meant he was replaced by another green? Wee Trevor fairly neglected the non organic portion of his portfolio before he left. Was it Ciaran Cuffe that replaced him?

Well his title was Junior Minister of State for Food and Horticulture but like you said he forgot about conventional food and concentrated on feeding the people of Ireland from farmers markets, Bord Bia scrambled around and produce a couple of suspicious reports on organic sales during his tenure, now we all know civil servants in state bodies wouldn't do that sort of thing to seek favour. Ciran Cuffe took over his brief.

So does McEntee have actually knowledge of the Horticulture brief? Sargent did nothing for the area apart from encourage people to grow their own.

keep going

out of curiosty what do you think he should do first. what do you see as the big issue he can do something about

Corsendonk

keep going wrote: »

out of curiosty what do you think he should do first. what do you see as the big issue he can do something about

Tackle the major supermarket multiples buying practices, I can't see it happening as they have too much political pull and role out how they create jobs do its at the expense of small retailers.

Birdnuts

Corsendonk wrote: »

Well his title was Junior Minister of State for Food and Horticulture but like you said he forgot about conventional food and concentrated on feeding the people of Ireland from farmers markets, Bord Bia scrambled around and produce a couple of suspicious reports on organic sales during his tenure, now we all know civil servants in state bodies wouldn't do that sort of thing to seek favour. Ciran Cuffe took over his brief.

.

A bit of a sweeping statement!! - Ireland is still well behind the curve on organic production compared to the rest of the EU - highlighted by the fact that tens of millions of euros of organics that could be produced here continue to be imported:( - Plus the world-wide market continues to grow in this area(and other added value products) on the back of food scares and increased spending power in developing countries.

PS: As a PT farmer, sportsman and conservationist I was hoping Andrew Doyle would get the gig for junior:(

brianthebard

funny man wrote: »

What dose a minister have to do to be classed as a good minister?

Be interested in the job, be willing to learn, to liase with different parties with an interest in his work, help to promote the sector they are working in and to improve or create efficiencies in the department and in the relationship between the department and the people who use the department. Those would be the big ones for me to start with.

snowman707

brianthebard wrote: »

Be interested in the job, be willing to learn, to liase with different parties with an interest in his work, help to promote the sector they are working in and to improve or create efficiencies in the department and in the relationship between the department and the people who use the department. Those would be the big ones for me to start with.

Coveney needs to do a major clean out of the Dept, starting at the top, neither Smith or Coughlin had the ba**s (sorry Mary) to take them on ,

some tough negotiations coming up in Europe for SFP etc

I think given his options Kenny probably picked the best candidate for now, however if proven otherwise I hope kenny has the cop on to take him out

whelan1

will be interesting also to see how james reilly does in health, major reforms needed there, there are alot of wasters in the health system

irishh_bob

snowman707 wrote: »

Coveney needs to do a major clean out of the Dept, starting at the top, neither Smith or Coughlin had the ba**s (sorry Mary) to take them on ,

some tough negotiations coming up in Europe for SFP etc

I think given his options Kenny probably picked the best candidate for now, however if proven otherwise I hope kenny has the cop on to take him out

dont expect coveny to rock the boat too much either , the man is no radical , thats for sure

Corsendonk

Birdnuts wrote: »

A bit of a sweeping statement!! - Ireland is still well behind the curve on organic production compared to the rest of the EU - highlighted by the fact that tens of millions of euros of organics that could be produced here continue to be imported:( - Plus the world-wide market continues to grow in this area(and other added value products) on the back of food scares and increased spending power in developing countries.

PS: As a PT farmer, sportsman and conservationist I was hoping Andrew Doyle would get the gig for junior:(

Have you got figures of the organic products we import? I seem to remember asking the same question in the sustainablity forum and didn't get a definative reply.

Whats Andrew Doyles credentials? apart from representing Wicklow?

Box09

Andrew Doyle is a farmer from Roundwood in Wicklow. He was the FG spokesman on Agriculture in the last Dail and was in contention for the Ministerial position. Pretty controversial that he did not even get the junior ag minister position.

Birdnuts

Corsendonk wrote: »

Have you got figures of the organic products we import? I seem to remember asking the same question in the sustainablity forum and didn't get a definative reply.

Whats Andrew Doyles credentials? apart from representing Wicklow?

70 million euros was the last figure I saw in a domestic market of 105m euros(based on IOFA figures) - Andrew Doyle was their spokesperson for Agri in the last Dail

Birdnuts

Box09 wrote: »

Andrew Doyle is a farmer from Roundwood in Wicklow. He was the FG spokesman on Agriculture in the last Dail and was in contention for the Ministerial position. Pretty controversial that he did not even get the junior ag minister position.

Between that and Hogan getting the Environment - I'm pretty disgusted, looks like more of the same cr*p ie. "jobs for the boys":(

reilig

Hi Birdnuts,

I'm just curious about where you got the figure of €70 million?? ( I don't mean to be snooty about it)

I recently helped a friend who was doing a thesis on organic food production and figures that he obtained from the Irish Organic Trust and the IOFGA were that our domestic market is in excess of €180 Million and that less than 6% of this is imported. Based on documentation received from both organisations, we are pretty much self sufficient for organic produce and the only produce that we have to import is that which is unsuitable for growing in our climate.

Birdnuts wrote: »

70 million euros was the last figure I saw in a domestic market of 105m euros(based on IOFA figures) - Andrew Doyle was their spokesperson for Agri in the last Dail

Birdnuts

reilig wrote: »

Hi Birdnuts,

I'm just curious about where you got the figure of €70 million?? ( I don't mean to be snooty about it)

I recently helped a friend who was doing a thesis on organic food production and figures that he obtained from the Irish Organic Trust and the IOFGA were that our domestic market is in excess of €180 Million and that less than 6% of this is imported. Based on documentation received from both organisations, we are pretty much self sufficient for organic produce and the only produce that we have to import is that which is unsuitable for growing in our climate.

The year I was using was roughly 2007 and came from the IOFGA and the WDC(Western Development Commisions). No offence but I find your "less then 6%" very hard to beleive given the sheer volume of foreign organic horticulture produce such as potatoes, carrots, broccolie etc. in the likes of Aldi, LIDL M&S and even Dunnes - Are you sure the figures don't relate to organic lamb only?? - since I think we are indeed pretty self sufficient in that area

reilig

Birdnuts wrote: »

The year I was using was roughly 2007 and came from the IOFGA and the WDC(Western Development Commisions). No offence but I find your "less then 6%" very hard to beleive given the sheer volume of foreign organic horticulture produce such as potatoes, carrots, broccolie etc. in the likes of Aldi, LIDL M&S and even Dunnes - Are you sure the figures don't relate to organic lamb only?? - since I think we are indeed pretty self sufficient in that area

Lidl and Aldi don't sell any fruit or veg that could be classified as organic in Ireland.

The other supermarkets like Dunnes and Tesco only import organic veg and fruit that isn't grown in this country (They have a published policy)

M & S food is all imported from the UK so there is no way of recording their figures

I didn't write the thesis, I just proof read it for him. This is the information that he got back through his research.

Funny enough, he works in the WDC (Western Development Commision) in Ballaghaderreen so they will probably publish it (internally at least)

Birdnuts

reilig wrote: »

Lidl and Aldi don't sell any fruit or veg that could be classified as organic in Ireland.

Are you sure?? - the stuff I get there appears to have the Soil Association standard

http://www.wdc.ie/regional-development/organics/

Up to 75% imported - based on 2007 Bord Bia figures I beleive:)

reilig

Birdnuts wrote: »

Are you sure?? - the stuff I get there appears to have the Soil Association standard

http://www.wdc.ie/regional-development/organics/

Up to 75% imported - based on 2007 Bord Bia figures I beleive:)

It doesn't say when it was published, but if it was published in 2007 then it is based on reaearch from 2005 or even 2004.

There have been a lot of changes in the last 6 to 7 years.

Well now they have more up to date research than that

reilig

Birdnuts wrote: »

Are you sure?? - the stuff I get there appears to have the Soil Association standard

http://www.wdc.ie/regional-development/organics/

Up to 75% imported - based on 2007 Bord Bia figures I beleive:)

Going to Lidl or Aldi to buy Organic Food is like going to a butchers for to buy Tofu. Would you not support your local farmers market where proper Irish organic vegetable and fruit can often be bought at better prices??? At the very least, it would be sustainable!!!

Corsendonk

Birdnuts wrote: »

Are you sure?? - the stuff I get there appears to have the Soil Association standard

http://www.wdc.ie/regional-development/organics/

Up to 75% imported - based on 2007 Bord Bia figures I beleive:)

Is the report available to actually see a breakdown of what we import? Because that just sounds like a marketing figure. That 70% will include lines not profitable to manufacture here because its highly specialised or products sourced out of season thats why I would like to see a breakdown of what the 70% is.

Corsendonk

reilig wrote: »

Lidl and Aldi don't sell any fruit or veg that could be classified as organic in Ireland.

I don't understand, don't they sell organic certified products?

Corsendonk

Birdnuts wrote: »

Between that and Hogan getting the Environment - I'm pretty disgusted, looks like more of the same cr*p ie. "jobs for the boys":(

Well it is Junior Minister for Food, Horticulture and Food Safety. you could easily argue the point it could have gone to first time TD Brendan Ryan, He represents a constituency with the highest concentration of Horticulture industry in the country, He has a Degree in Chemistry, a Masters Degree in Food Science and has worked in the Food and pharmeutical industries giving him an ideal background for the brief.

TEDDY O KEEFFE

whelan1 wrote: »

after having brendan smith and mary coughlan i think simon coveney will do well in agriculture

Simon Coveney as FG agri spokesperson was fairly quiet when Greencore sold out the sugar industry in Ireland

AtillaTheHun

TEDDY O KEEFFE wrote: »

Simon Coveney as FG agri spokesperson was fairly quiet when Greencore sold out the sugar industry in Ireland

was his portfolio at the time agri related?

TEDDY O KEEFFE

Not too sure , but with his agri up bringing , his agri 3rd level education , being a member of the opposition should be enough to give an educated opinion on a matter that was affecting a farm sector/vote sector that were in danger of losing their livelihood he did not have to be involved in social dept, when he could comment on Brian Cowen.

agcons

He spoke at the ACA agm today. Having listened to his various predecessors over the years I have to say he is a breath of fresh air. He has a plan, 4/5 year objectives and a thought out approach as to how to go about achieving them. Hopefully he wont be smothered by the mandarins in Ag House. The AEOS debacle is not of his making but he pulled no punches today and appears to be able to see the big picture rather than focusing on shortterm parish pump stuff. We can only wish him well for all our sakes.

TEDDY O KEEFFE

agcons wrote: »

He spoke at the ACA agm today. Having listened to his various predecessors over the years I have to say he is a breath of fresh air. He has a plan, 4/5 year objectives and a thought out approach as to how to go about achieving them. Hopefully he wont be smothered by the mandarins in Ag House. The AEOS debacle is not of his making but he pulled no punches today and appears to be able to see the big picture rather than focusing on shortterm parish pump stuff. We can only wish him well for all our sakes.

Yes I have to agree with you and I would wish him well also , unfortunately in relation to any irish minister new or ex. having a big say in negotiations that have been held for such a long time apart from the hold up for the last couple of years , is expecting the impossible , the factor that has emerged as new is the call for compensation for farmers that may lose in the short term which is getting back to the greencore issue that compensation solved that problem