Sir, - The street theatre and media hype surrounding the WTO's agenda-setting meeting in Seattle risks obscuring the potential of the WTO to revolutionise Irish agriculture.
Since pre-history our farmers' livelihoods have been based largely on cattle. Today beef, milk, butter and cheese are still the mainstays of the rural economy. Unfortunately, the EU produces more of these products than it consumes; and the great majority of this over-supply is located in Ireland. This means that, among EU members, we are usually dependent on a combination of volatile world markets (we all can recall those tricky Middle East beef deals) and essential export subsidies.
But the unfortunate reality for farmers is that the Celtic Tiger is not based on exporting butter and beef. The danger for Irish agriculture is that WTO decisions will be taken to suit the makers of computers and pharmaceuticals who want more, not less, tariff-free access to overseas markets.
Global trade liberalisation (the very raison-d'etre of the WTO) will require the further dismantling of export subsidies and other EU farm supports. This will eventually eliminate the severe damage these measure do to the livelihoods of extremely poor farmers and the incipient food industries in very poor countries such as Nambia and Senegal.
The long-term defence for Irish farmers and processors is to reduce their dependence on uncertain export subsidies and, instead, to sell much more into EU markets. Our animal husbandry is natural, extensive, and grass-based. Continental intensive feeding systems have recently been polluted with dioxins in Belgium and human excrement in France. Which system does the customer prefer? Surely we can compete! - Yours, etc.,
Dr Brian Scott, Executive Director, Oxfam, Burgh Quay, Dublin 2.