Limerick farmer praised at Thomond Park for 'tackling' co-ops over milk prices

THE AGM of the ICMSA was held at Thomond Park last week. It was a fitting location for a send-off to Creggane’s Ger Quain, who kept tackling and tackling co-ops over milk prices during his six year tenure as chairperson of ICMSA’s dairy committee.

The meeting was chaired by ICMSA president Pat McCormack, who paid particular tribute to Mr Quain. Mr McCormack said that Mr Quain had worked long and hard in the interests of the family farms that were the backbone of the association and the wider rural economy.

He specified Mr Quain’s “unwavering” commitment to securing the highest possible milk price as the bedrock of what had been a “hugely successful” term as chairperson of the dairy committee.

“Ger Quain was never distracted or diverted into side issues or peripheral matters; his focus was on the milk price that farmers receive and whether it was in line with what he and his team adjudged to be the highest price then possible according to the dairy markets.

“Ger and his team quickly established themselves as the best in Ireland on milk price analysis and their expertise was made public and institutionalised by the setting up of the ICMSA interactive milk price tracker whereby any farmer can now simply log-on, input their own milk constituents and volumes, and at the touch of a button discover what every co-op in Ireland would have paid for their own individual supply.

“It’s a game-changer that has quickly become the industry standard metric and it was steered through and inspired by ICMSA’s dairy team under the chairpersonship of Ger Quain”, said Mr McCormack.

The modest Creggane dairy farmer said that his interest in farmer welfare and the cause of farming families would go on “undimmed”.

Instead of focusing on his time as dairy chair he took the opportunity to convey his sincere commiserations to the family and friends of the late Tom Leahy who died recently in a tragic accident on his farm in Murroe. The late Mr Leahy was a valued colleague of Mr Quain’s in Limerick ICMSA.

Due to Covid, there were 24 farmer-delegates there in person and hundreds participating via Zoom. John Jordan, CEO of Ornua, spoke as did Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue via Zoom. UL’s Dr David Styles outlined the greenhouse gases situation with which the sector is grappling.

In his address, Mr McCormack said that there is an onus on media to establish the credentials of those purporting to speak on how farming must change to become more sustainable.

He said that the lack of real knowledge on display in matters concerning farming and the environment in the general media was “quite staggering” and would certainly not be tolerated on any other subject on which commentators hold forth.

The ICMSA President said that given the enormity of what was at stake, farmers – and the wider rural communities in which they live and work - were entitled to hold the general media to a reasonable standard.

He said: “Time and again….vaguely defined ‘environmental activists’ were given airtime on both State and commercial broadcasters to thrash farmers and by extension wider rural communities without ever having to demonstrate any working knowledge of farming or food production”.

Mr McCormack said that having debated many of these activists for years, it was his firm conviction that most wouldn’t know a “heifer from a hoover”.

He also said that there were very legitimate questions around the funding of several environmental NGOs and it was in everyone’s interest that NGOs concerned revealed in full the source of their funding – including from all arms of the State - and specifically whether any originated in corporations involved in the manufacture of so-called “synthetic” meats and milks. It is hoped a normal AGM can be held next year.