93. Deputy Peter 'Chap' Cleere asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the supports available in budget 2026 for the tillage sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55463/25]

Sentiment score: 0.13

The tillage sector is a vital part of the agrifood sector. A series of three consecutive poor harvests has severely impacted the viability of the tillage sector in Ireland. What supports are available in budget 2026 for the sector?

Sentiment score: -0.02

I welcome the €50 million additional funding and the commitment given today that a consultation process with key stakeholders will take place. When 1,000 farmers attend a meeting, it shows that there is a problem and a big challenge in the sector. We know the tillage sector contributes €1.3 billion annually to the Irish economy, but the sector is in decline, as the Minister outlined. The area under tillage farming in Ireland has reduced by 40% in 40 years. We are not tilling as much land as we were previously. The decline, as the Minister said, is a result of numerous pressures on the sector, including high input prices, competition for land and low global grain prices. Ireland now has one of the lowest percentages of land devoted to arable cropping among EU countries, at about 6.5% of the utilisable agricultural area. This is a huge challenge and a huge problem. I acknowledge and welcome the additional supports that are going to be put in place, but more needs to be done to future-proof this sector in the short, medium and longer term.

Sentiment score: 0.06

It was recently reported that the Department of agriculture intends to reopen the technical files on Irish whiskey. Currently, Irish whiskey is defined as a "spirit distilled on the island of Ireland ... from a mash of malted cereals, with or without whole grains of other cereals". By this definition, there is absolutely no requirement at the moment to use Irish grain in the production of Irish whiskey. Is the Minister able to confirm if the technical files will be reopened? If they are, would he be supportive of requiring Irish whiskey to be made with grain grown in Ireland? To me, this would seem an obvious way to support the struggling tillage sector.

Sentiment score: 0.01