Roche's Feed Mill in Co. Limerick has been forced to temporarily cease production as a result of the on-going nationwide fuel protests.

The fuel protests taking place are currently blocking access to Foynes Port in Co. Limerick, which is affecting the supply of raw materials to the mill.

Nutritionist and director at Roche's Feeds, Paul Hennessy told Agriland that the mill is down to 'limited production' because of the blockades.

Hennessy said that Roche's Feeds has had lorries parked in the port since last night (Tuesday, April 7), which are unable to leave with loaded trailers due to the protests.

With two ships waiting to be unloaded, Roche's Feeds had lorries waiting at the port to get in again this morning but ultimately ended up returning to the depot empty.

No raw materials have been delivered to the mill today (Wednesday, April 8).

The feed company are also unable to source the materials from elsewhere. The next closest port to the mill is Ringaskiddy, which has also being blocked, according to Hennessey.

He said Dublin port is 'open to some level', but highlighted that it is not a viable option as protests are continuting on the motorway to Dublin.

According to Hennessy, farmers have been collecting bags of feed but said that it was nearly impossible to feed a dairy herd with these bags.

The feed company indicated that it is concerned that the fuel price protests could potentially lead to animal welfare issues, such as grass tetany because of weather forecasts for a wet weekend.

There have also been concerns expressed more widely that with dairy cows reaching peak milk production farmers could be facing the potential prospect of empty meal bins in some regions.

Fuel protests

The fuel protest, which began yesterday (Tuesday, April 7), has seen farmers, contractors, hauliers and others take to major roads.

The slow-moving convoys have led to traffic disruption in many parts of the country, with those involved calling on the government to take stronger action.

Fuel costs have skyrocketed since the war in the Middle East unfolded back in February.

The government did confirm a support package in late March, which saw a reduction of 3c/L to the cost of green diesel.

Green diesel was also made eligible for a cut of 2c/L to the National Oil Reserves Agency (NORA) levy, bringing the total reduction down by 5c/L.

At the time of this announcement, green diesel had already experienced an approximate price increase of 73c/L in the month.

In the same package, petrol was reduced by 15c/L while auto diesel was reduced by 20c/L.

Meanwhile, the government also increased the maximum repayment allowable under the Diesel Rebate Scheme from 7.5c/L up to 12c/L of diesel for hauliers and passenger bus operators.