TD calls for compensation fund for farmers who lost up to 50% of their crops due to 'unusual rainfall'
Calls have been made for a special compensation fund to help struggling tillage farmers who have lost up to half of their crops, .
It comes as farmers are set to protest outside the Dáil this afternoon.
Separately Fianna Fáil are to bring forward a motion in the Dáil calling on Agriculture Minister Michael Creed to set up a crisis support fund to provide direct payments to farmers who were impacted by severe crop loss last year.
Fianna Fáil's agriculture spokesman Charlie McConalogue said: "The Government have not recognised the particular plight of these farmers and indeed recognised that there is a real need for a compensation fund to ensure that they can meet the bills which are falling due and also to ensure that they can stay in business."
Mr McConalogue said around €4m to €5m would be needed to help around 300 farmers.
The Donegal TD said the tillage crisis had impacted particularly on farmers across the west of Ireland.
He said the "unusual rainfall" at harvest time meant that many farmers lost between 25% and 50% of their crops.
Mr McConalogue he said this tillage crisis had impacted particularly on farmers across the west of Ireland.
He said there was an €86m under-spend in the Department of Agriculture last year so he said that the capacity and the money is there but "unfortunately the will isn't there" within the Department of Agriculture.
"Unfortunately up until now the Minister has refused to put the funds in place.
"It comes on the back of three or four years of falling prices in cereals where farmers in the tillage sector haven't been making a profit so for those now who have lost significant portions of their crops this year it puts them in a situation which is exceptionally difficult to continue in business," he said.
