Milk Quota Allocated To Innovative Teagasc Project

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) December 7, 2009 -- Junior Agriculture Minister, Tony Killeen, T.D., has welcomed the allocation of milk quota to a major research project aimed at the development of profitable, expanding dairy farms as the sector moves towards quota abolition.

The project is being undertaken by Teagasc’s Moorepark Dairy Production Research Centre, located near Fermoy in Co Cork, in collaboration with Glanbia, the Agricultural Trust and AIB Bank.

Minister of State Killeen noted that the allocation of milk quota to the project will help generate valuable information on low cost, efficient milk production that will be made available to all dairy farmers through Teagasc’s advisory service. He added: “The project also will help dairy farmers to adjust to the new trading environment over the coming years. The dissemination of the relevant information and data, in a timely manner, to dairy farmers is of the utmost importance.”

“The abolition of milk quotas in 2015 and increased exposure to global market forces is expected to lead to a significant increase in milk production in Ireland. Dairy farmers must be ready to respond. In particular they need to plan for, and manage, a profitable expansion of their businesses. I believe this project will help to equip them with the best tools for this purpose”, added Minister of State Killeen.

The Clare T.D. indicated that quota allocations are expected to be of the order of 125,000 litres in the current milk quota year, rising to just under 3m litres in 2014/2015 as the three farms involved in the project increase production.

“They also complement to some extent the recent allocation of 200,000 litres of quota to each of 70 new entrants to dairying, in that Teagasc is developing a further research programme to assist the latter’s successful transition to milk production”, concluded Minister of State Killeen.

-ENDS-

Notes to Editor:

- High-resolution images of Tony Killeen, Fianna Fail TD for Clare, and Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, with special responsibility for Forestry, Fisheries and the Marine, may be downloaded from www.dunphyprimages.com
- For further information please contact Mark Dunphy of Dunphy PR at media@dunphypr.com or 086-8534900

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