Chair of EU Agriculture Committee visits Fermanagh
Fermanagh and South Tyrone MLA, Tom Elliott, has thanked Conservative MEP, Neil Parish for taking the time to meet with and take questions from a group of farmers and representatives of Fermanagh’s independent retailers during his recent visit to the Province.
Mr. Parish, chairman of the European Union’s influential agriculture committee, was on a visit to Northern Ireland at the invitation of Ulster Unionist MEP, Jim Nicholson.
Speaking after the meeting at the Killyhevlin Hotel, Enniskillen, Mr. Elliott said: “I think I speak for all those present today when I say how glad we were to welcome Neil and his wife Sue to County Fermanagh.
“With the recent cases of FMD in England Neil’s schedule is even busier than normal, his participation here this evening is therefore appreciated even more by the local farming community.”
The Ulster Unionist assemblyman continued: “The theme for this evening’s meeting was the promotion of local produce, in terms of retailers sourcing from local suppliers and ultimately the consumer making the decision to buy local which signals to shopkeepers that such an initiative is a profitable one to pursue.
“The example being promoted today is that of local, County Fermanagh milk, this initiative sees the local dairy industry and independent retailers working in concert to promote and educate with regards the many qualities of locally produced milk.”
Tom concluded by wishing the scheme well, and added: “I hope that such a partnership can act as a template for many similar initiatives in the months ahead and help improve the operating environment for local growers and producers.”