A plan to tackle the effects of the BSE crisis on meat markets has been announced by the EU Agriculture Commissioner, Mr Franz Fischler. Mr Fischler presented the plan, which aims to reduce beef production, in the European Parliament yesterday. He told a press conference afterwards: "Everybody knows there is a major crisis but it has become much greater than the one we coped with in 1996."
Mr Fischler told the parliament that beef consumption had dropped drastically and exports had crumbled. "The seven-point plan should defuse the slowly ticking time-bomb and the consumers will have their faith restored," Mr Fischler said. The European Commission was living up to its commitment to take swift action.
The plan, to be discussed by the Council of Ministers on February 26th, introduces an exemption to use set-aside land for organic farming. The use which may be made of land set aside under the support system for producers of certain arable crops should be extended to include the production of fodder legumes such as clover.
It is also proposed that no more than 90 cattle to each holding and 118 livestock units to each hectare should be eligible for certain premiums. For the special premium for male bovine animals, the existing possibility for member-states to change or waiver the headage-limit of 90 animals to each holding and age bracket should be suppressed.
The "purchase for destruction scheme" would be replaced by a special purchase scheme under which member-states could choose whether to store or destroy beef from animals over 30 months once BSE-testing of all cattle over that age had become compulsory. A system of individual premium rights would replace a regional ceiling of premium rights. A minimum of 20 per cent of animals for which the suckler cow premium was applied must be heifers and the maximum percentage of heifers would be increased to 40 per cent.
To avoid the costly "safety net intervention", the ceiling for buying into public intervention of 350,000 tonnes a year for the whole EU should not apply for 2001 and 2002. Mr Fischler said the target for beef reduction must come down to demand level. "We must reduce production to the level of demand in two or three years." He stressed that aid to farmers would not be reduced. He said the new measure for tested beef meant that nobody would be forced to slaughter. This new element was solely for tested animals irrespective of their destination.
Sean MacConnell, Agriculture Correspondent, adds:
Mr Fisch ler's proposals were greeted with dismay by Irish farm organisations, with the IFA describing them as "unbalanced and unfair". The IFA president, Mr Tom Parlon, said they were a direct attack on premiums and stocking densities, which support the grass-based system of Irish beef production. He said the suckler cow and special beef premium and stocking density cuts would cost Ireland in excess of £100 million. The president of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association, Mr Pat O'Rourke, said the proposal to cut premiums would cause damage by reducing the State's national herd.