Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 22 February 2024
97. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if it will be necessary for Ireland to reduce dairy and beef production to reach our legally binding greenhouse gas emissions reductions targets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8358/24]
View answerI am fully committed to the long-term viability of the Irish agricultural sector including our farm families who are the bedrock of the industry. The industry is hugely important in terms of economic activity and employment. The sector was assigned a challenging target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2030 but is one that farmers and the industry are committed to achieving.
In Climate Action Plan 2024, I have set out measures around three themes: inputs and additives, husbandry practices, and diversification. Each of these measures will be supported by a range of actions, setting out a viable pathway towards reaching our targets.
To this end, our Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Strategic Plan will support farmers to transition to more sustainable practices while also supporting family farm incomes, with a budget of €9.8bn. In addition, I have provided €1.5bn for the new agri-environment scheme “ACRES”, a five-fold increase in funding for Organic Farming to €256m and €260m to improve the carbon efficiency of the suckler herd through genetic improvement.
There is no doubt that some livestock farmers will take up diversification options that are provided as part of our climate transformation including to areas such as organics, forestry, tillage and the provision of feedstock for anaerobic digestion as we increase the production of renewables. However, given the efficiency gains that continue to be made at farm level, I remain confident that we will continue to reduce emissions in the agri-food sector without reducing our agri-output.
The implementation of a low methane emitting breeding programme has significant potential to harness the genetic variation for methane emissions that exists within the national herd, this, in turn, will bring about permanent and cumulative reductions in the methane output of future generations of livestock. The results of the research also highlight the potential to breed more environmentally sustainable animals, while at the same time, not having a negative impact on food production. Progress continues to be made in relation to feed additives, which will have a significant positive impact on reducing emissions.
My ambition is to future proof Ireland’s Agri-Food sector for the benefit of our industry, the environment and our farm families. Ireland's agri-food sector will continue to be underpinned by our world class livestock and tillage sectors, and it is critical that we work collectively to achieve our environmental targets while maintaining food production.
