Beef and mushrooms will be the hardest hit as all agricultural sectors will be ‘severely affected’ by Brexit

ALL SECTORS OF agriculture will be “seriously affected” by Brexit, beef and mushrooms most critically, a Committee of Oireachtas has heard.

Irish Farmers Association president Tim Cullinan said Ireland is a small nation on the periphery of Europe that will be hit the hardest by Brexit.

He urged that an agreement be reached between the UK and the EU to allow trade between the UK and Ireland to continue after the end of the transition period.

“But it is not only the farmers who are going to suffer, all the citizens of this country are going to suffer because of this because once there are restrictions on the product that enters this country, it will only do one thing and if any product is scarce we everyone knows what is going to happen, it is going to cost more, ”he told the Oireachtas Agriculture Committee.

“The government will have to reach into its pocket and co-finance the money we receive from Europe because we are talking about billions, 1.5 billion pounds just for agriculture a year, that’s what it will cost.”

News emerged today that the UK and the EU reached an agreement on how to implement border and trade aspects of Brexit.

The agreement covers issues such as border controls on animal and vegetable products, and deliveries of refrigerated meats and other food products to supermarkets.

Cullinan stressed the importance of striking a deal.

He concluded his presentation to the committee by saying: “Obviously we want to see an agreement, we are very concerned about where we are and if we don’t get it, funding will be absolutely essential for this sector to move forward. “