The Irish Farmers Journal says it has collected 35,000 signatures so far in a petition launched by the paper to save the Suckler Cow herd.
The paper has launched a major campaign in recent weeks with the petition available to sign online and in marts across the country until the 30th of March.
There is certainly huge concern about the future of the beef industry especially considering international trade deals such as Mercosur which would increase imports from south American countries.
Yet the Department of Agriculture figures as published recently on AgriLand show that the decline in suckler numbers since 2010 have not been as dramatic as it’s believed.
While for example Donegal did record a noteworthy decline between 2010 and 2017 of nearly 10% – well above the national average decline of 4% – other western counties had smaller decreases.
For example the numbers were down by 585 in Co. Leitrim and Co. Sligo’s herd has shrunk by 743 in 2017 compared to the 2010 tally.
Adam Woods of the Irish Farmers Journal says these numbers are still significant for rural counties as he says the suckler cow herd is an integral part of the rural economy:
You can hear more on this story on AgriWeek tomorrow night Thursday at 9pm on Ocean FM.
