Ireland's trade in live cattle would face virtual closure if animal welfare rules dealing with transport were to be fully implemented by the EU, it was claimed yesterday.
The chairman of the Irish Farmers Association's Livestock Committee, Mr Derek Deane, called on the Minister for Agriculture, Mr Walsh, to initiate a major offensive to protect the live export industry.
At a European meeting of live exporters organised by COPA and UECBV in Brussels, Mr Deane said there were three specific proposals in the EU report which would devastate the trade.
He said the EU report proposed that animals should not be unloaded from vehicles at staging points and stocking densities should be increased to allow additional space for resting, feeding and watering, using a new non-scientific-based formula.
In addition, the report proposed that sea crossings should not be permitted if winds of force 5 or above were likely.
On the issue of wind conditions, the Met Service has carried out a detailed study of sea conditions from 1961 to 1990, which shows that if the proposal in the EU report on force 5 wind speeds were implemented, it would mean that for 215 days of the year or 60 per cent of the time the live export trade could not operate out of Ireland.
Mr Deane said this would effectively close down the live export trade. He said the implication of the proposals on staging points and stocking densities would require a 50 per cent increase in space requirements on vehicles.
The new stocking densities would mean the number of animals to each vehicle would fall from 64 to 44.
Mr Deane said on a typical journey from Ireland to Spain or Italy costing €6,350, this would increase the cost for animal from €99 a head to €144 a head, making the entire operation unviable.