So, nine years after the Brexit vote, the UK and the EU have come up with a trade deal that makes perfect sense for Irish agriculture.
At the heart of all this is the UK’s commitment to maintain full convergence with the EU’s animal and plant health standards.
Potato producers across the island of Ireland will be amongst the first farmers and growers to benefit directly from the new arrangements.
Once the new deal settles in, there should be no further issues when it comes to the sourcing of seed potatoes from Scotland.
The same principle should also hold where cereal seed stocks are concerned.
UK-EU trade deal
And this is a two-way road. The door will once again be open for Irish livestock breeders to sell their best bloodlines into the UK without additional inspections and paperwork being the order of the day.
What was agreed earlier this week between London and Brussels makes total common sense – a resource that was in very short supply during the initial Brexit trade negotiations.
Anything that can be done to free up trading relationships between the island of Ireland and the UK must be welcomed.
The resounding positivity that has accompanied the news of the amended trade deal from business and agri-food associations the length and breadth of the UK and Ireland is also significant.
And this is more than symbolic. It is a reflection of the fact that immense business opportunities will flow from the new UK – EU trading arrangements.
Consider the facts: food self-sufficiency levels in the UK have fallen to 65%. The most obvious source of the additional food required by British supermarkets and other food retailers is the island of Ireland.
And growing demand for food should creates new market opportunities within the Irish agri sectors.
Poultry is a case in point.
Bird flu has holed the British poultry industry below the water line. Allied to this are new bird welfare regulations, which have reduced total broiled production in England, Scotland, and Wales by 10%.
Given these circumstances, the potential to increase egg and poultry meat production on the island of Ireland is immense.
But making this happen will require a renewed focus being placed on food production by the Irish government.
And this can be achieved without in any way diluting the commitment in place to achieve a net zero scenario within Irish agriculture over the coming decades.
