Minister Heydon hosts meeting of Pig Roundtable

Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon, T.D. has chaired the fourth meeting of the Pig Roundtable (Wednesday 26th of January). The meeting followed on from a series of recent and ongoing engagements with stakeholders to discuss current market difficulties faced by the pig sector.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the main banks and the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) who outlined the options available to pig farmers to assist them during the current downturn in the business cycle. Highlighting their longstanding relationship with the sector, and the availability of various supports, the key message to farmers experiencing cashflow difficulties is to engage with the banks as soon as possible to discuss options and that the banks remain committed to supporting their customers in the period ahead.

Supports available include State-backed loan options such as the Brexit Impact Loan Scheme and the COVID- 19 Credit Guarantee Scheme, both of which are financed by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in partnership with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. These finance schemes can be used for working capital finance and include features which address the current financial needs of pig farmers.

Minister Heydon said

“I welcome the opportunity of the Roundtable to have detailed discussion with all stakeholders, including farm organisations, the banks, the processing industry and the feed industry, on the current difficulties facing pig farmers, arising both from lower market prices and a very significant increase in input costs, which are likely to continue for at least the first half of this year”.

He added that

“In terms of State supports Bord Bia outlined the significant efforts being made to promote quality assured Irish pigmeat on the domestic and export markets; and Teagasc outlined the dedicated advisory supports being provided to pig farmers. My Department will continue to monitor the market situation closely and is examining possible measures to assist in supporting farmers through this significant market disturbance”

Reiterating his vision that the Roundtable serve as collaborative mechanism in delivering on both the opportunities and challenges faced by sector, the Minister also underlined the importance of keeping in mind the longer-term strategic focus of the sector. With that in mind Minister Heydon set out the proposed schedule for future meetings of the Roundtable over the remainder of 2022 which will focus on progressing priority actions identified for the sector in Food Vision 2030.