Dairy farmers have been warned again by Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney that the EU will not change its rules on over-producing milk, which can result in fines being imposed, writes Seán Mac Connell.
Dairy farmers here have been positioning themselves to take advantage of the ending of the EU milk quota system, under which countries are limited to what they can produce. However, that will not happen until 2015 and farmers here have been hoping our European partners will allow more milk be produced.
The Minister told young dairy farmers attending the Macra na Feirme rally in Cork at the weekend that there would be no loosening of the milk quota controls before the system ends.