Irish Farmers' Association President Padraig Walshe has given the Minister for Agriculture, Mary Coughlan, a report which assesses beet growers' losses arising from EU sugar reform.
The report, by Deloitte financial advisers, commissioned by the IFA and published yesterday, called for farmers to be given €106m of the €145m available from an EU fund to compensate for the shutdown of the Irish sugar industry.
It follows a request from the minister to present the growers' case.
Mr Walshe impressed on Ms Coughlan the devastation that had been caused by the closure of the Carlow factory and the EU sugar reform, and he called on her to end the uncertainty on farm families by announcing full compensation for growers immediately.
The minister said she was determined that the Irish sugar industry would not have to pay the €25m restructuring levy if a crop was grown in 2006, and she hoped to have clearance on this at the Council of Ministers meeting on 20/21 February.
The minister assured IFA Sugar Beet Chairman Peadar Jordan that there would be no compulsory growing of sugar beet in 2006 in order to qualify for the restructuring fund.
The minister accepted the IFA proposal to use the average contract beet tonnage of 2001, 2002 and 2004 to qualify for the decoupled Single Farm Payment.
After a lengthy meeting with Greencore senior management, Peadar Jordan said Greencore had not moved beyond the price offered in December for the 2006 crop.
Mr Jordan said: 'Greencore will have to come forward with a better price package, including transport, to guarantee delivery of a beet crop in 2006.'
The IFA is due to meet Greencore senior management again next week.
