Farm organisations and minister to meet as drought crisis deepens
Growing fears that farmers will be left without winter fodder due to recent lack of grass growth
An emergency meeting of the National Fodder and Food Security Committee is set to convene next week to tackle the worsening drought crisis. The meeting, led by Agriculture Minister Martin Heydon, will involve key farming organizations such as the Irish Farmers Association, Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association, and Irish Co-operative Organisation Society.
The government is also seeking input from Teagasc, who will conduct a national fodder survey to pinpoint areas most in need. The survey must be completed by next Friday, given the current dire situation.
Minister Heydon's spokesman noted that while fodder is available across the country, grass growth has fallen short of five-year averages since the end of July. Grass growth in the west of Ireland remains normal, but in the southwest, it's between 50% and 75%, while the south and east have just 20% and 10% of normal growth, respectively.
Many areas in the southeast, east, and midlands have received little to no rainfall since mid-July, leading to desperate measures by some livestock farmers who are already spending hundreds of euros daily on winter fodder for their cattle.
Several farming bodies have called for urgent government action, with IFA president Francie Gorman urging immediate measures, as no significant rain is expected in the near future. Farmers are drawing parallels between the current drought and the one in 2018, when rain was scarce between late May and July. The ICMSA president, Denis Drennan, believes that the 2018 fodder shortage will serve as a guide for handling the current crisis, potentially resulting in State subsidies for fodder imports like haulage and alfalfa.
Sinn Féin's agriculture spokesman, Martin Kenny, emphasized the need for planning for a winter silage shortage, highlighting that farmers cannot rely on neighboring countries for aid, as they currently have none to spare. While many farmers have managed the situation well over the past few weeks, with substantial fodder reserves on many farms, experts warn that the situation could deteriorate rapidly if rain does not arrive soon.
As of now, no heavy rain is forecast in drought-affected areas, and soil moisture deficits in parts of County Carlow reach 98mm, highlighting the urgent need for rainfall to restore soil saturation levels.
Written by urgent.news from The Irish Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
