Your wishlist

funny man

With the elections over, a new government and a new agriculture minister appointed, if you are asked to brief the new minister what would you like him to change as a priority, what would you want to get rid off and what new things would you like to see implemented?

stanflt

stocking rates-was bang on 170 last year-dont want to go for deregation for fertilizer reasons

keep going

sorry funnyman posted the same question under "NEW MINISTER"thread a couple of min ago. ye all know mine

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superlevy,superlevy and superlevy

funny man

My wish list would be

1. Compulsary testing of all calves for BVD/IBR/Johne's, blood test all adults in conjunction with brucellosis test and all blue cards stamped if positive.
2. removal of farming by date, change to a more flexible approach which could run along side the met eirann blight warnings whereby in spells of dry weather or in years of early growth spreading could be brought forward.
3. I would also favour some sort of land tax, that would be fully reclaimable if a farmer makes any tax returns from the farm to revenue. This might free up land to does that want it.

Just trowing them out raw, i'd like to see whats ye're thoughts.

jeff greene

funny man wrote: »

My wish list would be

1. Compulsary testing of all calves for BVD/IBR/Johne's, blood test all adults in conjunction with brucellosis test and all blue cards stamped if positive.
2. removal of farming by date, change to a more flexible approach which could run along side the met eirann blight warnings whereby in spells of dry weather or in years of early growth spreading could be brought forward.
3. I would also favour some sort of land tax, that would be fully reclaimable if a farmer makes any tax returns from the farm to revenue. This might free up land to does that want it.

Just trowing them out raw, i'd like to see whats ye're thoughts.

Very good point on the testing and stamping the card, alot of PIs are sold on I'd imagine. Would farmers pay for it tho?

funny man

jeff greene wrote: »

Very good point on the testing and stamping the card, alot of PIs are sold on I'd imagine. Would farmers pay for it tho?

as farmers we need to stand up and protect our livestock from disease, IFA's stance on Gov paying for it when the country is bankrupt and they want the scheme to be a voluntary one, makes a joke of trying to rid the country of these dreaded diseases. I would have no problem paying out for every calf born on the farm to test and all older stock at the annual herd test. the cost of this if the test's are proved accurate in the first instance will be paid back ten fold with better herd health.

Would all on here be in favour of a scheme like this?

stanflt

funny man wrote: »

as farmers we need to stand up and protect our livestock from disease, IFA's stance on Gov paying for it when the country is bankrupt and they want the scheme to be a voluntary one, makes a joke of trying to rid the country of these dreaded diseases. I would have no problem paying out for every calf born on the farm to test and all older stock at the annual herd test. the cost of this if the test's are proved accurate in the first instance will be paid back ten fold with better herd health.

Would all on here be in favour of a scheme like this?

i would be in favour

keep going

funny man wrote: »

My wish list would be

1. Compulsary testing of all calves for BVD/IBR/Johne's, blood test all adults in conjunction with brucellosis test and all blue cards stamped if positive.
2. removal of farming by date, change to a more flexible approach which could run along side the met eirann blight warnings whereby in spells of dry weather or in years of early growth spreading could be brought forward.
3. I would also favour some sort of land tax, that would be fully reclaimable if a farmer makes any tax returns from the farm to revenue. This might free up land to does that want it.

Just trowing them out raw, i'd like to see whats ye're thoughts.

yeah in theory just dont trust the dept not to make a hames of it with some stupid little reg or two .now is the time to do before cow nos go up

what happen

get rid of bvd,ibr.johnes get county herd testing .get single farm payment post2013.new farmbuilding grants.new reps with hen harrier scheme.

red bull

Milk Quota ringfencing time for change ?

keep going

red bull wrote: »

Milk Quota ringfencing time for change ?

now theres a brave man,it ll never happen.even though its probilly the cause of the backward coop structure we have today almost on its own. there was never any inscintive to change if the quota was always going to stay put

5live

I would like to see farm profits taxed at 12.5 or 15% and only withdrawls for personal use taxed at paye rates(with paye allowances too:rolleyes:). That way, farms could build up a reserve to use for investment besides having to borrow all the funds and would also have a reserve to help cater for poor price years. It would also reduce the pressure to spend money in good years to reduce tax bills. About 0.0001% chance of it happening though

thetangler

Milk Quota ringfencing time for change ?

Second that one

funny man

5live wrote: »

I would like to see farm profits taxed at 12.5 or 15% and only withdrawls for personal use taxed at paye rates(with paye allowances too:rolleyes:). That way, farms could build up a reserve to use for investment besides having to borrow all the funds and would also have a reserve to help cater for poor price years. It would also reduce the pressure to spend money in good years to reduce tax bills. About 0.0001% chance of it happening though

That's a good suggestion, corporation tax for farmers without the cost of setting up a company.

funny man

thetangler wrote: »

Milk Quota ringfencing time for change ?

Second that one

Do ye think it would make much difference?

keep going

i think it would be "to little too late"but all donations grate fully accepted for the next couple of years

Suckler

I was going to start a new thread on this topic, but as there is a new govt & new Ag minister installed it should come under their remit:

How satisfied are farmers with the marketing of Irish beef? I hear farmers constantly complain about the prices they are getting at the Irish factories compared to input costs (latest beig rising price of fuel) but are we going to continue relying on the local market.

I'm living in the middle east at the moment and whenever I eat out I have a choice of either American corn fed Angus or Australian beef. It applies to 99% of restaraunts I go to. Pork not being allowed here, specialist steakhouses are a growing enterprise. Even when I go shopping, its australian beef / USA beef or New Zealand Lamb. Bord Bia had a few reps out here and they had Irish labelled "Grass Fed" beef installed in a few supermarket chains ,Waitrose being the main one. All the Irish out here got an email triumphantly announcing this. However, any time I go there it is still 5:1 in favour of other markets. The Irish beef cuts I get, incidently, have a far less fat content and better cuts than the competition; its just the competition have a better market share. Irish beef is non-existent in restaraunts.

There was a letter to the editor in the 12th of March edition of the IFJ from an Irish person living in Saudi Arabia relating to this. Arguably the largest food expo in the world was held in Dubai recently and typically there was only a small Irish presence ; Bord Bia/Irish Dairy Board and a seemingly impressive Glanbia stand but as a nation that prides itself as a meat and Dairy producer we did litle to justify our reputation.

Local markets can generate a finite demand and sustain a finite output from our agriculture sector. We need to get in to international markets more. Look at the threat of Brazilian beef hovering at them moment, Why aren't we doing the sam to other markets?

aidanki

Suckler wrote: »

I was going to start a new thread on this topic, but as there is a new govt & new Ag minister installed it should come under their remit:

How satisfied are farmers with the marketing of Irish beef? I hear farmers constantly complain about the prices they are getting at the Irish factories compared to input costs (latest beig rising price of fuel) but are we going to continue relying on the local market.

I'm living in the middle east at the moment and whenever I eat out I have a choice of either American corn fed Angus or Australian beef. It applies to 99% of restaraunts I go to. Pork not being allowed here, specialist steakhouses are a growing enterprise. Even when I go shopping, its australian beef / USA beef or New Zealand Lamb. Bord Bia had a few reps out here and they had Irish labelled "Grass Fed" beef installed in a few supermarket chains ,Waitrose being the main one. All the Irish out here got an email triumphantly announcing this. However, any time I go there it is still 5:1 in favour of other markets. The Irish beef cuts I get, incidently, have a far less fat content and better cuts than the competition; its just the competition have a better market share. Irish beef is non-existent in restaraunts.

There was a letter to the editor in the 12th of March edition of the IFJ from an Irish person living in Saudi Arabia relating to this. Arguably the largest food expo in the world was held in Dubai recently and typically there was only a small Irish presence ; Bord Bia/Irish Dairy Board and a seemingly impressive Glanbia stand but as a nation that prides itself as a meat and Dairy producer we did litle to justify our reputation.

Local markets can generate a finite demand and sustain a finite output from our agriculture sector. We need to get in to international markets more. Look at the threat of Brazilian beef hovering at them moment, Why aren't we doing the sam to other markets?

well said

Muckit

Suckler wrote: »

I was going to start a new thread on this topic, but as there is a new govt & new Ag minister installed it should come under their remit:

How satisfied are farmers with the marketing of Irish beef? I hear farmers constantly complain about the prices they are getting at the Irish factories compared to input costs (latest beig rising price of fuel) but are we going to continue relying on the local market.

I'm living in the middle east at the moment and whenever I eat out I have a choice of either American corn fed Angus or Australian beef. It applies to 99% of restaraunts I go to. Pork not being allowed here, specialist steakhouses are a growing enterprise. Even when I go shopping, its australian beef / USA beef or New Zealand Lamb. Bord Bia had a few reps out here and they had Irish labelled "Grass Fed" beef installed in a few supermarket chains ,Waitrose being the main one. All the Irish out here got an email triumphantly announcing this. However, any time I go there it is still 5:1 in favour of other markets. The Irish beef cuts I get, incidently, have a far less fat content and better cuts than the competition; its just the competition have a better market share. Irish beef is non-existent in restaraunts.

There was a letter to the editor in the 12th of March edition of the IFJ from an Irish person living in Saudi Arabia relating to this. Arguably the largest food expo in the world was held in Dubai recently and typically there was only a small Irish presence ; Bord Bia/Irish Dairy Board and a seemingly impressive Glanbia stand but as a nation that prides itself as a meat and Dairy producer we did litle to justify our reputation.

Local markets can generate a finite demand and sustain a finite output from our agriculture sector. We need to get in to international markets more. Look at the threat of Brazilian beef hovering at them moment, Why aren't we doing the sam to other markets?

Your dead right. We (as beef farmers) should be questioning Bord Bia more to find out what they are exactly doing to promote our products. Afterall that's what they were set up to do:rolleyes:

The only hoo ha in the media seems to be the meat we supply to McDonalds...... lovely

Bord Bia: Rosaleen

Hi all,

Rosaleen here from Bord Bia. I am following the thread with interest and I wanted to address some of the issues raised.

Firstly, with regard to overseas events and promotions – in 2011 Bord Bia will participate in 18key international food trade fairs. Each year, the selection of trade fairs and the scale of our participation are based on 1) the commercial opportunity as assessed by the industry in association with Bord Bia, 2) the willingness of sufficient firms to participate, and 3) the level of investment those firms are prepared to justify (Bord Bia grant aids this participation to the maximum allowed).

Eight Irish food companies, representing a total of thirteen Irish food brands, exhibited on the Bord Bia stand at this year’s Gulfood event (mentioned above). Industry feedback and sales results to date have been very positive with significant new business secured.

In addition to the exhibiting companies, we also organized a targeted market study visit for representatives from another 12 Irish food companies. The companies travelled to Saudi Arabia and the UAE to a series of meetings with potential distributors, retail accounts and major caterer operations such as Emirates Flight Catering.

Secondly, with regard to hearing a little bit more about our work – just last week we issued 96,000 copies of a Bord Bia Newsletter with the Irish Farmers Journal. While it’s by no means a fully comprehensive list of all our projects / work, it will certainly provide you all with a flavour of our current and upcoming programmes, promotions and initiatives. If you missed it and wish to avail of a copy, I have it here on PDF, please do not hesitate to send me an email – rosaleen.oshaughnessy@bordbia.ie

Finally, we’re always open to feedback - please feel free to contact us anytime. You can also follow us on facebook and twitter, links below.

Thank you,
Rosaleen

www.bordbia.ie
www.twitter.com/bordbia
www.facebook.com/bordbia

funny man

Bord Bia: Maeve wrote: »

Hi all,

Rosaleen here from Bord Bia. I am following the thread with interest and I wanted to address some of the issues raised.



Finally, we’re always open to feedback - please feel free to contact us anytime. You can also follow us on facebook and twitter, links below.

Thank you,
Rosaleen

www.bordbia.ie
www.twitter.com/bordbia
www.facebook.com/bordbia

Rosaleen, as a farmer i feel that Ireland has lost the niche markets to countries like Scotland, who use a specific product like Angus beef and have built a whole image around the product, while we may have some good food companies, is there not a lazy culture amongst our beef processors from a culture of processing beef for intervention and they have not moved on fast enough to get there share of these markets.

funny man

keep going wrote: »

i think it would be "to little too late"but all donations grate fully accepted for the next couple of years

removing ring fencing won't have any net gain in quota for the country, it will only allow the big cheque men to buy up quota to cover their needs.

keep going

maybe your right,but ring fencing has resulted in the coop structure we have today.would you think coops would have worked a bit harder to get a better price for milk if there was a danger of the milk going to other areas.as it is no matter how bad the price they paid they were always garunteed the milk.ring fencing was not about protecting farmers it was about protecting coops and ineffciant processors(i cant spell for s---)

Suckler

Bord Bia: Maeve wrote: »

Hi all,

Rosaleen here from Bord Bia. I am following the thread with interest and I wanted to address some of the issues raised.

Hi Rosaleen,

First off, thanks for your quick response.

1. With regard to the Gulfood event; I wasn’t there myself but only used the letter to the editor (Irish Farmers Journal 12th March) as an example of one area where we had a perceived lack of market investment. I am based in the Middle East myself and as I alluded to, the market here seems to be sown up by Australian & U.S. beef. When I do get Irish beef, I, and others, are always guaranteed of better cuts. The main issue I had is that the meat counters are constantly 5:1 against Irish meat. I have never seen Irish meat on a restaurant menu.

2. Lamb produce is non-existent here. Pork, as you are aware, is not going to be a strong market in this part of the world. Some others may want to comment on the marketing of Lamb and pork products as I have only really noted the beef sector.

3. As another poster stated; we seem to be lacking in breed specific marketing. When I order meat here, I am told it is U.S./ Aus/ N.Z Angus etc. Corn fed etc. But I think our branding could go further. One thing we have going for us is our traceability in meat. This should not be used as simply a trace back tool for disease but carried the other way and used as a marketing tool. Let the consumer know that a particular section of meat comes from, for example, a group of farmers in a particular area, on a pure grass diet, organic or not etc. American companies actively go and engage the farmers for specific sourcing of meat as many have opened their eyes to feed lot corn fed meat. We should nurture and heavily advertise the fact that we do not participate in “factory farming”. We could and should be more aggressive in advertising methods; Show consumers our green grassy fields compared to American feedlots. All this plays on the mind of the consumer.

4. The Irish meat I see advertised here is labeled as grass fed; which is a good start. American corn fed beef is fed a huge feed lots where animals stand in manure constantly and are fed corn to fatten them quicker compared to forage feed. We should be letting consumers know of the fact that corn fed animals have an increase in E-coli build up in their system. Strain E. coli 0157:H7 is associated with human illness (and sometimes death) as a food borne illness. Research by Cornell University has found that grass-fed animals have as much as 80% less of this strain of E. coli in their guts than grain-fed cattle, though this reduction can be achieved by switching an animal to grass only a few days prior to slaughter, but this does not happen as they will not gain the necessary weight. Also, the amount of E. coli they do have is much less likely to survive our first-line defense against infection: stomach acid. This is because feeding grain to cattle makes their normally pH-neutral digestive tract abnormally acidic; over time, the pathogenic E. coli becomes acid-resistant. If humans ingest this acid-resistant E. coli via grain-feed beef, a large number of them may survive past the stomach, causing an infection. This should be hammered home to consumers.
5. Brazilian beef is another threatening market hovering over us for quite a while. Again our “Green” image can combat this; Irish beef has the fifth lowest carbon footprint in the world; a carbon dioxide equivalent of 19kg per kilogramme of beef produced, compared to an EU average of 22.1kg and 80kg for Brazil. These statistics should be used to promote Irish beef and denigrate competition.

Edit : I havent mentioned Dairy sector either: Others involved in that area would be better able to comment.

funny man

keep going wrote: »

maybe your right,but ring fencing has resulted in the coop structure we have today.would you think coops would have worked a bit harder to get a better price for milk if there was a danger of the milk going to other areas.as it is no matter how bad the price they paid they were always garunteed the milk.ring fencing was not about protecting farmers it was about protecting coops and ineffciant processors(i cant spell for s---)

deffinetly agree with you, there will be a radical shake up when quota's go.

Bord Bia: Rosaleen

Hello Suckler, apologies for the delayed response.

I’ve spoken to my colleagues in the meat department, those responsible for overseas and emerging markets. In terms of the sentiment, all were in agreement with most of your comments – but we’d like to make a couple of additional points:

The reason that there is very little Irish Beef and Irish lamb in markets outside the EU is primarily commercial – that is, that the EU markets, besides being more stable from a consumption and currency point of view, are also generally higher priced markets. The price of Irish beef and lamb is above, and usually very significantly above, the levels of the Southern Hemisphere suppliers, and our companies usually avoid direct competition, as customers normally choose the cheaper option. Of course there are always exceptions and niche opportunities, but these then have to be weighed up commercially against the additional costs involved in the sales, marketing and delivery of these niche products in relatively small quantities, to distant markets.

The point of comparison between our “family farming” methods in Ireland and the “factory farming” in many other countries is well made, and indeed we are currently developing a new marketing campaign which emphasizes this point. A glimpse of the direction we’re going in can be found under the “field specialists” section of the website irishbeef.co.uk

Similarly, on carbon footprint, we would be in full agreement on the opportunity here. We are well advanced on a major project in this area, and will be announcing details shortly. It is crucial that any claims on beef, as indeed on any food product, are substantiated fully. Much of the carbon footprint claiming being done is not so robustly researched. Our process in this regard is very thorough, and we will be launching it in the coming months.

One general point, in regard to your comments on EColi, and indeed, this point is valid to any meat advertising – negative comparative advertising or promotion is, almost without exception, proven to be bad for the full range of products – both those being targeted, and those being promoted. In the case of E Coli for example, consumers would without doubt react negatively to all beef products, if they were reminded that there could be a problem in any beef. There are numerous examples of this in marketing circles, but the most notable in the area of beef, is that of German operators promotion of German beef as being free of BSE, while pointing the finger at British beef. The outcome was a catastrophic drop in all beef consumption in Germany, which lasted many years.

Thank you,
Rosaleen