Forestry Sector
Dail Éireann — 2025-10-14
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Michael Healy-Rae (IND), Kerry

My Department will therefore have delivered significant growth in 2025 and will continue to build on this success. In 2025 we launched a communications plan promoting the options available to farmers and other landowners through advertising on radio and in the national press, the targeting of information through social media channels and text messages and direct engagement with farmers and landowners through local and national events such as the National Ploughing Championships. We also fund stakeholder organisations, through promotion projects and training, to support the development of forestry sector networks.
In 2025 we launched the planting on public lands initiative and are actively engaging with public bodies with land to encourage them to plant. That is an initiative that was not taken before. In addition to this proactive engagement, we provide extremely generous grants and premiums for 20 years for farmers and 15 years for non-farmers across a wide range of schemes, positioning forestry as an ideal complementary income stream for any farmer or landowner, with options available to suit all farming types. I am committed to continuing to promote this valuable land use option for farmers and other landowners in every way that I can, and to continue to grow the forestry sector into 2026 and beyond. I hope I will have the Deputy's support in doing so.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2025-10-14/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-21T01:01:04+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-10-14