The end of this programme for Government period. That is why we have increased the funding allocation for organics in the Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, programme fivefold compared with the previous programme. We have allocated €250 million to organics over the course of the next CAP period, which will run from 2023 to 2027. Those who have applied to the scheme this year and last are being accepted. Previously, there was not enough space on the scheme for the number of applicants. That is no longer the case. The …

We are making good progress. I have outlined the Government's commitment of a fivefold increase in funding for organics over the next few years. Between last year and this, the area under organic farming has increased by 35%. That is significant, but we need to drive on. We want to reach the 7.5% target. We want to communicate to farmers the great opportunity for them presented by moving into organics, how that can work for them from the point of view of production and profitability, and how it can work for Ireland…

I thank the Deputy for posing this question. In the context of the Ukrainian crisis, significant implications are being seen across all sectors, including the agrifood sector. As well as the immediate humanitarian crisis that is facing us and that must take priority, we need to take the necessary steps to ensure food security is maintained in the period ahead. The impact the illegal war in Ukraine is having on our farm families is the number one priority for me and the Department. At farm level, the crisis has been…

There have been intensive engagements between my team and contractors on the issues facing the latter. I will meet them shortly to discuss the challenges further. Due to the fact that excise duty on green diesel is much lower than on auto diesel, the capacity to make changes in that excise duty is limited. We applied significant cuts to standard diesel and standard petrol in response to the fuel challenges, but we also reduced the excise rate on agricultural diesel by 5 cent - 2 cent initially and a further 3 cent …

We have been monitoring the situation closely, in particular the challenges facing the farming community. That is why I came forward with the tillage scheme, providing €400 per hectare for each additional hectare of cereal that is grown this year. It is also why I have come forward with the €1,000 payment to farmers to help with the cost of making silage. One of the key costs involved, alongside fertiliser, is contractor costs, which are obviously increased because of the current challenges. That should certainly h…

As Deputy Connolly will be aware, one of the commitments in the current programme for Government is to conduct a review of the potential demand for wool-based products, such as for insulation and fertilisers in domestic and international markets. There is huge potential for us to develop a wool industry here in Ireland to help to drive increased returns to our sheep farming families. Over the last couple of years, for a product that used to be quite valuable, it has not been covering the costs of clipping. In March…

We are being very proactive in trying to identify new uses for wool. The completion of the report took longer than we had hoped but we were pushing hard to keep it moving along. Thankfully, we now have the report and it will be published in the next short period - over the next few weeks. Our objective has to be to see how we can add value to wool. Its traditional use is in regard to clothing and while that market has become depressed, there are new potential uses for it. I hope this report will provide potential o…

To take the Deputy’s approach, we are looking for woolly opportunities here. We are looking to maximise the potential that wool can deliver in terms of new uses, ones that have not traditionally been used and ones which can deliver a profit margin for farmers and remove what has become a cost for them. Under the programme for Government, we have taken this initiative, which is unique among countries internationally. We are looking to forge new ground and we are working hard to drive it on as quickly as we can. We w…

As to the overall cost, €100,000 was committed to the project.

I thank Deputy Crowe for raising this issue. I also thank him for his advocacy in regard to the challenges facing farmers as a result of cost pressures, in particular his advocacy and representations on putting a scheme in place to support Clare farmers and farmers nationally in regard to growing fodder and preparing for the winter ahead. As he will be aware, shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, I met with the main farm organisations and Teagasc on 8 March 2022 to discuss the impact of that illegal invasi…

I recognise the efforts farmers are making and the response they are showing. Costs, including fertiliser costs, certainly have gone up and there are other challenges too. Farmers are recognising the absolute importance of growing grass. We also are seeing them take on board the advice from Teagasc in regard to the efficient use of organic manure. We have a lot of latent potential in this country in terms of how we use slurry. We are seeing a real step change this year in terms of its efficient use. It has never be…

I thank the Deputies for their questions. The Ministers of State, Deputy Heydon and Senator Hackett, and I have been very proactive as a team in working with the farming organisations to address the challenges that are there and to ensure we make the preparations now in order to be secure next April and May. I brought all the farmer representatives together immediately after the invasion of Ukraine, recognising the challenges that would arise from it and the need to act now. We must do the work in these coming mont…

This time last year, the price of milk was 35 cent a litre.

Today, it is 50 cent a litre and the cost of production has gone up by an estimated 7 cent in the meantime. Therefore, the costs are being more than covered by the prices being made. Indeed, the estimate is that profitability will be very strong on dairy farms this year.

This particular issue is not about covering all sectors. It is about growing grass and making sure agriculture, as a sector, is secure. That is why we are targeting the available funding at the beef and sheep sectors, which, as the evidence is showing, need that support to generate the activity to make the whole sector secure.

I thank the Deputy for his question. As he is aware, the agriculture sector is required to reduce emissions by between 22% to 30% by 2030, based on a 2018 baseline of 23 megatonnes of CO2 equivalent. This is a challenging target for the sector, but it is one that also will present opportunities for farmers. Our farm families are committed to taking a leadership role in meeting our overall climate ambitions and have shown their willingness to do so. Indeed, it is as much in the interest of farmers as anyone else to …

There is great potential for the use of feed additives to reduce methane. Seaweed is one of the options that can deliver on that. Other products are also coming on the market. Teagasc has carried out tests to assess how that would work in an Irish situation. The assessment suggests it can deliver a reduction of approximately 30% in methane, which is quite exciting and offers considerable potential. However, we would need to verify that. Following the research, we will be looking to utilise that and maximise the cap…

I know the Deputy has been advocating for farmers to maximise the potential to produce energy in the years ahead as has the Government. Regarding the joined-up thinking that will be required to drive progress on this, we are engaged on a cross-Department basis to ensure the systems talk to one another so that it ultimately works at farm level. We need to support farmers to put the infrastructure in place. We need to ensure the planning capacity is there so that it can be done easily in practical ways. There should …

It has always been my policy to conform to the highest standards when it comes to stakeholder and public consultation. I believe farmer engagement, through farm organisations as well as directly with farmers in my tour of the mart network last year, was really important in framing this CAP programme and the CAP strategic plan I submitted to Brussels. This has been the case in the development of our CAP strategic plan, despite the difficulties posed by Covid-19 restrictions. I thank the many farmers in every county …

We put a massive effort into engaging and consulting. We never previously had such extensive consultation. There were many different views and I believe we reached a balanced and strong CAP plan. The mart meetings were very important. It had not been finalised at that stage; it fed into the finalisation of it. I visited 26 counties as part of that. We had a great engagement with the farmers who came along and contributed. There was great engagement from Oireachtas Members across all parties except the Deputy's. Non…