Watch: Catch up at the mart - what do farmers think about Leo's remarks?
A spell of better weather was not the only thing turning up the heat this week for farmers as pressure continues to mount - and not just because of fuel and fertiliser prices.
Remarks by the former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar about farmers and rural Ireland saw many people seeing red.
The former Taoiseach was chatting on the Path to Power podcast with Matt Cooper and said that farmers "still see themselves as the people who bring money and jobs into Ireland, where actually a lot of the time they bring costs on Ireland".
"People in rural Ireland are very quick to tell people in urban Ireland that ‘we're the real workers, we’re the ones paying all the bills, we’re the ones feeding the country.
"I think maybe we need to be a little bit more blunt in urban Ireland and say, 'actually, that's not the case, we’re the ones paying all the bills and you’re the ones in receipt of a lot of subsidies and a lot of tax benefits that other people don’t get'," he went on to say.
These comments have stirred strong feelings amongst farmers and rural communities and resulted in Varadkar offering an apology of sorts.
Agriland caught up with farmers at Ballymahon Mart in Co. Longford to hear how they really felt about the former Taoiseach's remarks.
One farmer said he was "very disappointed" by Varadkar's remarks.
"It's disappointing that he would try and push rural Ireland against urban Ireland," he commented.
The farmer questioned why Varadkar did not voice this opinion when he was Taoiseach, a position he held before resigning back in 2024.
When it comes to subsidies, most farmers who chatted to Agriland highlighted how important these supports are, especially for smaller farmers.
Another mart-goer said: "The truth of the matter is, it's a pity that there isn't more of a return now to farming because more people would be able to set up in rural Ireland and stay on the farm.
"Unless farming is subsidised in some form, it doesn't stand a chance."
Urban vs rural Ireland
The former Taoiseach's comments also brought the rural versus urban debate firmly into focus again.
Another farmer at the mart said that Varadkar was "wrong, to a point" in what he said.
However, he did not think there is a disconnect, believing that rural and urban communities mutually benefit each other, rather than the opposite.
"You can't have one without the other," he said when asked if there is a divide between rural and urban Ireland.
One farmer also argued that if there is a disconnect, it lies at a government level.
"There's no understanding and no empathy with rural communities from the government.
"It was sad to see the way that they portrayed the protests and spoke down to the people," the farmer added.
Danny Healy-Rae
Moving from past to current government officials, Independent TD Danny Healy-Rae's departure from the Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture and Food was also a major talking point in the sector this week.
Speaking to Agriland, one mart-goer felt that the decision was justified.
"How would he expect to kept there when he wouldn't vote for them?"
However, not everyone in attendance at this Thursday's cattle sale was in agreement.
"It wasn't fair on Danny," another farmer said.
"Danny speaks his mind - but it's not kosher to speak your mind anymore."
One farmer described the Healy-Rae family as "very clever politicians", but stopped short of going into further detail.
New TB rules
Over the last two weeks, mart-goers have also been getting to grips with the new cattle movement rules, which have been introduced as part of the government's TB action plan.
The reaction to the new TB rules seems to be mixed among many farmers, with some still unsure about how the changes will impact on them.
"It's hard to know," one farmer said about his experience with the new movement rules.
"They're not getting the better of it - they're just getting worse."
Another farmer also highlighted the uncertainty amongst his peers regarding the changes, saying that mart-goers "really don't know what's going on with it".
For some, these changes have yet to make an impact, with several drystock farmers telling Agriland that the new TB rules do not apply to their herd when selling cattle.
A suckler farmer outlined: "We tested a fortnight ago, so we won't be worrying for another while."
Weather
Although the department has sent leaflets to farmers about these new TB rules, several mart-goers said that they did not have the time to read up on them.
As the weather has improved in recent weeks, farmers are busy making the most of the sunny spells after one of the wettest starts to a year in a while.
One farmer said: "The amount of rainfall we've had this year is colossal.
"April grass has come and gone, and most stocks are still in sheds, so it's a month you're not going to regain as the year goes on."
However, some farmers are on the luckier side, as they told Agriland and have started turning cattle out to paddock.
"Everything is better with good weather," one farmer commented.
"It was a long time coming, but it's here now."
