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CAP attitude must change for future of Irish farming

Issued : Wednesday 10 March, 2010

One of the biggest issues Irish farming will face in the next two years is the negotiation of the future of the Common Agricultural Policy in Europe, according to Labour MEP. Alan Kelly.

He made his comments announcing details of a conference on the future of the rural economy and the Common Agricultural Policy that he is to host, 10am - 4pm, Friday 26 March, in Tipperary Institute, Thurles.

Alan Kelly said: "The same arguments that worked before for Irish farming may not work again.

"There is a need for all stakeholders to get together and formulate what exactly we want from the future of CAP and to see how we can best go about achieving it.

"It is vital for both the future of farming and the rural economy that a strong CAP is maintained.

"However the degree to which CAP is misunderstood by both farmers and the public is quite simply astounding.

"I know this from my own research and in the conversations I have had with stakeholders

"We will have to convince both the farming community and the wider community about the true benefits of CAP and what it can achieve for both farming and the rest of society alike.

"It is on the back of this study that I can announce a seminar on the future of CAP and Ireland will be taking place on Friday, March 26th.

"It would be my aim to bring all the stakeholders together so we can identify our needs and come up with a common strategy to get the best possible deal.

"Our rural communities are highly economically dependant on the future of CAP so we must rise to the challenge of finding a new and better CAP after 2013.

"The debate must move away from farmers and how much money they receive. We must start talking about the opportunities it could provide in terms of securing food supply, fighting climate change and re shaping the rural economy to make it more competitive.

"The new CAP must ensure the competitiveness of Irish agriculture, seek to reduce regulation and be linked to job creation in rural areas.

"However to achieve that we must start the debate now as it will be the major issue in European Union circles shortly.