madam president now that this vote is over and the arguments have been made i would like to come back to something that ran through the debate here and in the committee
this was the noticeable mistrust of farmers and an assumption by many that farmers are somehow enemies of health and the environment
in my experience this is the opposite of the truth
farmers in ireland are and have been stewards who for thousands of years have protected and preserved the environment keeping it alive clean and productive
similarly farmers have also been the basis of our health
they produce the good food that is the basis of our good health
i would urge you to renew our faith in our farmers who are doing their best to feed us in very difficult situations circumstances of weather pest and of course eu policy
