ICSA president Sean McNamara has said that the main focus for ICSA ahead of this year’s National Ploughing Championships is to stand firm against the Mercosur trade deal and to demand a fully ringfenced CAP budget. “Farmers are being treated as collateral damage in international trade deals and in efforts to finance other priorities in Europe. The Mercosur deal is a serious threat to our beef sector, and any weakening of the CAP budget would strike at the very foundation of farm incomes across Ireland,” he said.

Continuing Mr McNamara said, “With so many politicians and MEPs set to attend this week, ICSA will be driving home the message loud and clear: Mercosur must be stopped, and the CAP must be protected. We will be challenging them face-to-face to deliver for Irish farmers and to stop selling us out in Brussels. Farmers deserve clear answers, not excuses.”

“The dual threats of Mercosur and CAP cuts cannot be ignored. Farmers are being thrown under the bus twice over – first by a reckless Mercosur trade deal that would flood the market with cheap imports, and second by attempts to raid the CAP budget to fund other EU ambitions. Together, these pose a direct attack on the future of Irish farming. ICSA will not take this lying down – we will fight tooth and nail to block Mercosur and to defend a fully ringfenced CAP.”

Farmers attending the Ploughing are also invited to visit the ICSA stand to sign a petition opposing the Mercosur deal. You can find ICSA at Block 2, Row 10, Stand 216.

ENDS