I thank the Deputy for raising this issue and the specific example of north Kildare, an area I obviously know well and is close to my heart. As the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, I am committed to driving sustainable agriculture practices that underpin Ireland's food sector and contribute more broadly to food security through an export market valued at €19 billion. The tillage sector is an important and integral component of Ireland's agrifood industry. The Government is committed to growing a vibrant tillage sector, as set out in the programme for Government, aligning with the roadmap set out in the Food Vision Tillage Group report, which was published last May. A vibrant and sustainable tillage sector is central to increasing our food and feed security while also contributing to our climate objectives. My Department also supports the production of indigenous renewable energy. As set out in the Food Vision Tillage Group report, there are opportunities for tillage farmers to contribute to renewable energy. On-farm renewable energy generation activities offer farm diversification and income opportunities. Earlier, we discussed the challenges of generation renewal and at its heart is an impediment for younger farmers taking over the family farm and it can be that piece around income. Elements that can drive the diversification of income and provide additional income opportunities are important. Measures taken during the previous Dáil included taking away the requirement for planning permission for solar panels on roofs of sheds. Farmers' core activity of producing top quality, safe and nutritious food continued. The income they derived from the cattle, sheep or grain that was in that shed continued, yet they got to supplement their income by having solar panels on the roof of their sheds. These can contribute in a positive way to the decarbonisation of the energy system. The solar capital investment scheme for example, one of the measures in TAMS, provides support to farmers wishing to invest in renewable energy making use of existing shed roof space. Government policy was to do away with the requirement for planning permission for that as well.
Sentiment score: 0.48
I understand that concern among farmers who see highly productive agricultural land have ground solar put in and that land come out of food production or definitely reduced. As landowners subject to planning and other considerations, farmers have property rights which are protected by the Constitution and a legitimate interest in maximising the income from their holdings. However, it is important that food production is not negatively impacted by the development of solar farms. The programme for Government has committed to introducing planning guidelines for solar farms and to provide certainty in the development of solar energy in agriculture. While issues regarding planning fall under the remit of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, my Department will input into the development of these guidelines due to the potential impact on agricultural land. In the meantime, my Department will continue to support farmers to ensure that Ireland maintains its position as a producer of sustainable food with a global reputation for quality.
Sentiment score: 0.43
I thank the Deputy again for raising this. There are two points at the heart of his question. One is the importance of our tillage sector, on which I absolutely concur with him. There is a reason my Department has had a number of interventions to support the tillage sector, which has come through a couple of really difficult years, from straw incorporation and protein aid to the tillage payment, which I was delighted to be able to sign off on early into my term. These are the supports for a tillage sector that is absolutely vital. I have always made the point that agriculture and all the different enterprises within agriculture are like a gearbox and each enterprise is dependent on the other. The livestock, dairy, beef and sheep sectors and beyond are very dependent on the tillage sector and vice versa, so it is really important that we mind all those sectors when they go through those rough times but also recognise the fact that there are opportunities for diversified income for farmers from alternative renewable energy sources. It is good for farmers to be able to maximise those returns while also not losing sight of the very important role we have in producing food.
Sentiment score: 0.47
I thank the Deputy for raising this question on such an important issue. Farm safety, health and well-being is a priority for this Government. There is a specific focus in the programme for Government on farmer mental health and well-being, recognising the unique challenges faced by the sector. I secured dedicated funding of €2.5 million in budget 2025 to build on previous efforts of my Department to improve the safety, health and well-being of our farming community. This funding will be used for the continuation of existing initiatives and to develop new initiatives for 2025. One example of such initiatives is the farmers' physical and mental health awareness programme On Feirm Ground 2, which my Department is cofunding along with the Health Service Executive and the Department of Health. This expanded programme is providing training for agricultural advisers, vets, Department staff, members of farming organisations and other agricultural professionals and service providers, to signpost farmers to health and well-being supports. Last year, I supported 20 farm safety, health and well-being projects under an open call. More than half of these projects focused on farmers' mental health and well-being and provided a range of approaches to supporting farmers. Projects that engaged directly with farmers through physical and mental health checks proved particularly successful. I am also supporting research into farmer mental health. Examples of projects include the DCU-led FarMHealth research project, which examined farmers' mental health literacy and help-seeking behaviour to inform the development of an educational mental health intervention for farmers, and the UCD-led Farming Minds: Developing evidence-based interventions to enhance farmer mental health. My Department distributed the Health and Safety Authority's farm safety partnership booklet, Farmers' Health and Wellbeing - A Guide to Staying Healthy While Farming, in the BISS packs in 2023. This year, the HSA's Guidance on Managing Fatigue with Farm Work booklet will be distributed in the 2025 packs. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae, Minister of State with responsibility for farm safety, health and well-being, and Department officials are currently developing further initiatives for this year, which will be announced in due course.
Sentiment score: 0.38
The Deputy is dead right. The work is isolated in nature. I know that from my time farming at home. The days were long. If I was in the tractor on my own all day doing a job or out tending to fencing or to livestock, I could have too much time with my own thoughts, I used to find. It does not happen in politics much; we tend to be much busier and kept well distracted. I am being flippant about what is a very serious issue here. The truth is that there is that isolated nature of the challenges, and if that person tends to live on their own or does not have the family support network, it can be an even greater risk. In many respects what we are talking about here is the people themselves identifying that they are under pressure. They might not realise they are under as much pressure. They might not realise that the fact that they have not been sleeping right or that they are not eating right has all contributed to this buildup. A lot of what On Feirm Ground is about is training those people who engage with farmers or who meet them such as their advisers, the vets and the feed merchants who come into the yard. When they identify that the farmer is struggling, they can signpost supports that exist for them.
Sentiment score: -0.05
Exactly. There are a lot of pressures in farming from price to weather to rushing around and all those different elements. The pandemic really brought home the fact that the lockdown took away the key social engagements that farmers had that they really depended upon such as the trip to the mart, maybe the trip to mass or religious service at the weekend, a trip to a pub or a trip to a local sporting event. That was the only break away from the farm where they could meet other farmers and share their experiences and concerns, whether it was a local farm organisation branch meeting or whatever, and realise that the pressures they were feeling were the same as everybody else's. The area of mental health is directly linked to farm safety. As regards the fund available to the Minister of State, Deputy Healy-Rae, this year, I know he is looking at a number of projects there around engagement and social isolation and to support farmers in their mental health. I will absolutely support those endeavours because this is key. The heart of Food Vision 2030 is about minding our farmers as our primary producers.
Sentiment score: 0.20
I thank Deputies Moynihan and Cleere for raising very valid points. To respond to Deputy Moynihan first, I am looking at every engagement farmers have whether on the farm when someone like the AI man, the milk collection, the vet or the farm adviser visits or on the knowledge transfer walks. The Deputy talked about farm walks. Knowledge transfer groups are a great way of addressing farmer mental health and well-being. I take great heart from having seen farmer mental health and well-being becoming more prominent at the agriculture shows I have attended in recent years. There are now stands at those shows. This is not about having a day when farmers go to talk about their mental health; it is about incorporating it into everything they do. That is key. The same point applies in responding to Deputy Cleere's contribution. On Feirm Ground is about advisers identifying farmers who are showing signs of distress. These are farmers the advisers know well who, in conversation when leaning over a gate, might say they are not feeling right. It is about equipping people like vets and officials in my Department to signpost supports to farmers because not knowing where to go can be a challenge. It is about making sure they are well equipped to point out and signpost those supports.
Sentiment score: 0.26
I thank Deputy Connolly for raising this important point. European Innovation Partnership projects, EIPs, are locally led innovative projects developed by operational groups acting collaboratively towards a common goal. They are a fantastic vehicle and one I used in my previous role as Minister of State. We use such projects across a range of areas within the Department of agriculture. EIPs represent a really important funding model that bring together innovation actors, including farmers, advisers, researchers, businesses and NGOs, to work together to address local challenges through innovative solutions that can more easily be put into practice on farms. Together with my Department, the EU co-funds EIP projects as part of the CAP strategic plan 2023-2027. Under the CSP, an open call for proposals for European Innovation Partnership projects on the overall theme of environmental sustainability was launched on 5 November 2024 with an associated budget of €17.5 million. This was an extremely important EIP call which sought solutions for sustainable agriculture, soil health, horticulture, organics, the circular economy and the bioeconomy. I was delighted with the response rate with 96 applications being received as part of the phase 1 process. Of this total, 27 applicants were selected to submit a more detailed project proposal under phase 2 of the competition, which closed on 24 February 2025. These detailed project proposals will be evaluated in April, this month, by an expert evaluation committee comprising internal and external experts. I look forward to announcing the successful projects under the EIP environmental sustainability call once the work of the expert committee has been concluded. As the evaluation process is still ongoing, I am not in a position to comment on any particular application.
Sentiment score: 0.36
The Deputy will understand that I am a step removed from the evaluation process and, as such, the straight answer to the Deputy's question is that I do not know. The group will know because, if it was involved in phase 2, it would have had to make a submission. I am happy to talk to the Deputy about that but, for very good reasons, I am a step removed from the evaluation process. It is based on objective criteria. EIPs are in great demand. That €17.5 million is in great demand and so there is a high bar to reach. That phase 2 process comprises my officials working with the groups to develop the projects so that those that are finally selected and allocated money will achieve the best return. I will come back to the point the Deputy has made about wool in general in my supplementary response but, by their nature, EIPs are designed to be locally led initiatives that we learn from. They are supposed to be models or pilots so that we can learn from their example, extrapolate from them and possibly include them in the next CAP on a national basis. That is the real strength of the EIPs. I will come back to the point on wool in my supplementary reply.
Sentiment score: 0.30
Absolutely. The programme for Government highlights the importance of the wool sector and how we want to help develop further opportunities for wool and examine the possibility of a scouring plant. We do not have one in Ireland and that is an impediment to further development. I remember a time when the shearing of sheep and the collection of wool was a really valuable part of a sheep farmer's activity. That cheque was a very important part of that overall activity. Not only is wool categorised as waste but, in terms of economic return, its value is not seen as worth the work and the strain. Shearing and collecting wool is very physical work. That is something we want to see change. In addition to adding value to lamb and sheep as a commodity and creating an extra income stream for farmers, wool demonstrates the circular nature of our food production system in that it has so many great uses including insulation and many others that have not been considered in the past. I very much want to work with the sector to see that developed.
Sentiment score: 0.26
The call was launched on 5 November 2024 and 27 applicants were selected to submit a more detailed project proposal as part of the competition with this phase closing on 24 February. These have been submitted and will be evaluated in the month of April.
Sentiment score: 0.06
I am delighted to again have the opportunity to speak on GAEC 2, which was raised in the House earlier. As a reminder, GAEC 2 is a baseline requirement under the CAP regulations for the protection of carbon-rich soils. It is legally required to be put in place for 2025 as part of the conditionality requirements for the basic income support for sustainability, BISS, payment scheme. The proposal my Department has submitted to the European Commission for approval aims to strike a balance between the vital protection of peatlands and wetlands and farmers' rights to continue with agricultural activity on this land. With regard to the Deputy's question on the inclusion of some mineral soils, conditionality requirements must be controlled at land parcel level. Trying to isolate parts of the parcel where activities can or cannot take place is not practical and would be very difficult to control. If farmers believe their parcels should be split, they can do so as part of making their BISS application. If a farmer believes that a land parcel has been incorrectly included in the standard, they can appeal to my Department. However, if 50% or more of the parcel is identified in the map it is in scope. To apply a different threshold than 50% for GAEC 2 would either bring in far more mineral soils into the standard or leave too much peat soil outside of the standard. As a result, I am of the view that this percentage strikes the right balance. On the impact on small farmers, the proposal does not prohibit any of the common practices that are typical on these lands. There is a risk that this might be seen as something we really want to avoid, which is what farmers with carbon-rich peaty soils are feeling. However, the truth is that in the context of grassland, reseeding is still possible as are the maintenance and repair of existing drains. New drains are also allowed, subject to relevant planning legislation. That is already a requirement. I was determined that the proposal that went to the Commission, which was the subject of extensive consultation with all farm organisations, was set down on the basis that day-to-day farming activity on this type of land would not change. This is a baseline conditionality of the BISS. It is not a designation. It is nothing more than just that as part of this CAP strategic plan.
Sentiment score: 0.06
I cannot do this in a minute. I will start by taking grave exception to the phrase used by Deputy Conway-Walsh. She stated that what is proposed will "severely disadvantage" farmers in Mayo or anywhere else in the context of GAEC 2. That is not the case. Day-to-day farming and agricultural activity will continue. On the basic point made by Deputy Connolly, and following on from Deputy Kenny's point about splitting parcels of land, I have dealt with the INHFA. It proposed alternative wording in a footnote. It asked me to include that in the proposal to the Commission, which I have done. I am working with it. The Commission requires us to put it in. It then audits it afterwards. If we are wrong and if we cannot control it, that is when the disallowance arises. We could be in breach of up to a €100 million of a fine recurring on the single farm payment if we get this wrong. We have to have a small controllable area. The alternative to having 50% peat is having 100% in the land parcel. That would bring in 880,000 ha of mineral soils. I am striking the balance right while also saying that farmers' activity will not change. Their day-to-day activity can continue. This is not a designation like some people outside of this House are scaremongering about. I reassure farmers that their day-to-day activity will continue.
Sentiment score: -0.08
I was not suggesting that.
Sentiment score: 0.00
No wonder farmers are concerned. Deputy Conway-Walsh can only raise those concerns and I can only answer back on numerous occasions in this House, in the media and , at farming organisations' public and private meetings to reassure farmers that this is not a designation. When words like "designation" are used and references to planning are used, as was used earlier, that sets farmers' fear off. The only people who will know a land parcel is GAEC 2 is the farmer and the Department of agriculture. A local planning authority will have no idea of that. It will have no access to that map and will not know that. This does not impact planning. I cannot be any clearer than that in terms of reassurances. Farmers can split parcels. A natural boundary is needed. It can be done as part of the BISS. An appeal is not needed to do it, but a natural boundary, such as a hedge, ditch, river course or whatever, is needed. On to Deputy Connolly's point about the impact on small farmers, conditionality is applicable to all farmers regardless of size. However, those with farms of less than 10 ha in total area already exempt from controls and the penalties of conditionality. There will be an appeals mechanism through my Department which farmers can avail of.
Sentiment score: 0.06
I thank Deputy Moynihan for raising this really important issue. Our livestock sector faces ever-increasing animal health threats. Diseases such as bluetongue threaten our cattle and sheep. I take the threat of bluetongue virus, BTV, very seriously. My Department carries out post-entry sampling of all ruminant animals and camelids from mainland Europe for BTV regardless of the bluetongue status of the country of origin. This mitigates the risk of the disease being inadvertently imported with live animals. The EU TRACES system indicates that no such animals have entered Ireland from mainland Europe this year. No susceptible species have been permitted to be imported into Ireland from Great Britain since late 2023, when the first cases of bluetongue serotype 3 occurred in England. My Department carried out active surveillance for bluetongue in the east and south east of the country in the summer of 2024. Four farms in each of five south eastern counties were targeted, with 15 animals per farm sampled. A total of 300 animals were tested and all were negative. This followed an earlier enhanced surveillance effort in spring 2024 during which 205 animals were tested, again with negative results. This provided assurance that bluetongue was not already present in Ireland. My Department's regional veterinary laboratory network also routinely samples malformed foetuses for bluetongue testing as this can be an early indication of infection in a herd or flock. I recognise the importance of communication and engagement with stakeholders on this issue, which is why my Department convened a number of meetings on the threat of bluetongue during 2024 and earlier this year. Department officials have spoken at meetings of farmers and veterinary practitioners to raise awareness of this threat. There has been regular engagement between my officials and their counterparts in the Northern Ireland Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs under Minister Muir regarding proposed disease control measures for BTV, given that the island is one epidemiological site. Given that we are entering a higher risk period, as the Deputy has outlined, for possible bluetongue incursion, I urge all herd owners and other stakeholders to remain vigilant and aware of signs of the disease and to report any suspicions of the disease in their livestock to my Department without delay.
Sentiment score: -0.08
We have enhanced biosecurity measures at our ports for vehicles coming in. Ireland is currently BTV free. An outbreak of BTV in Ireland would have a significant impact on animal welfare, the Irish livestock sector and trade. It is important to state that Bluetongue does not impact human health or food safety. However, the bluetongue virus serotype 3, BTV-3, has spread widely across northern and western Europe in 2024, while serotype 12, BTV-12, has also been detected in the Netherlands and eastern England. BTV-3 vaccines have been developed and have been in use in EU member states affected by the disease in Great Britain. There are no vaccines for BTV-12 at present. As the Deputy outlined, we are now heading into the high risk period. Prior to April, the risk from midges was greatly reduced. From here on, however, the need for vigilance on the part of farmers, everybody who deals with livestock, my Department officials and others continues to be a top priority.
Sentiment score: 0.12
On the last point, as I outlined, there is no vaccine for BTV-12 but there is one for BTV-3 and that remains under consideration. On the Deputy's main point, the answer is that we are doing everything we can to try to keep this out. Obviously, we are not importing risk animals from risk areas. There is a risk, at the height of the season in high summer, of midges travelling over themselves from England and that is something we cannot mitigate against. In terms of identifying if it is here, doing so early is really important in order that we can put exclusion zones in place. That is mitigation. We do not want it to happen and we are making every attempt to ensure it does not get here at all. However, it is important to have plans in place in order that, if it is here, we know as quickly as possible where it is. That is where the vigilance aspect comes in. There are enhanced biosecurity measures at our ports for vehicles coming from at-risk areas. Those efforts are continuing. We are doing everything we can to protect Ireland from what is a notifiable disease that would have a big impact on our trade.
Sentiment score: 0.07
Deputy Aird and I attended the Irish Grain Growers AGM earlier this year, where we heard at first hand the challenges and opportunities for the tillage sector, which is an integral part of Irish farming and makes a significant contribution to overall agricultural output. The Government recognises the importance of the tillage sector and wants to grow the area under tillage crops in the years ahead. The report of the food vision tillage group, which was published in May last year, sets out a roadmap for sustainable growth and development of the sector. It is a comprehensive report that identifies opportunities to grow the sector and further improve its environmental footprint. Work is ongoing to progress the actions in the report. That work was discussed at a meeting on 7 February of the food vision tillage group. My Department will continue to engage with stakeholders to progress the implementation of the actions in the report. This will require collaboration and commitment from many stakeholders across the sector. My Department has provided significant direct supports to tillage farmers. The financial allocation for coupled support under the protein aid scheme was increased to €10 million annually from 2024. The straw incorporation measure, which was first introduced as pilot scheme in 2021 and 2022, is now included in the current CAP strategic plan, with an allocation of €50 million over five years. The tillage incentive scheme was introduced in 2022 in response to the illegal Russian invasion of Ukraine, with €20 million allocated over the lifetime of the support measure. The tillage capital investment scheme under TAMS provides support for a broad range of investments to support farmers to achieve improved competitiveness, increased efficiency, growth and environmental benefits. The 2023 and 2024 growing seasons were challenging for growers. In response to those challenges, the Government provided additional direct financial support. More than €14 million was paid out in January 2024 to support growers with unharvested crops in 2023 by way of an unharvested crop support scheme as a one-off flat-rate payment. In February this year, I was delighted to announce €32.4 million of payments under the tillage and horticulture support scheme, which was the Government's response to the difficult position in which the tillage and horticulture sector found itself.
Sentiment score: 0.49
I will go down to visit the flour mill and Deputy Byrne can get me a couple of boxes of Wexford wine while we are there.
Sentiment score: 0.00
At the Mallow festival, I was presented with Wexford wine and it was very impressive. I am delighted to see that market go from strength to strength. The programme for Government includes support for the development of knock-on industries from the tillage sector. That value-added factor is important, in addition to the basic fundamental of the sector that Deputy Aird articulated so well. It is estimated that the tillage sector contributed €1.9 billion per annum to the Irish economy in the period from 2018 to 2022. The sector is estimated to support more than 11,000 full-time equivalent jobs. The overall area of tillage crops in 2024 was more than 332,000 ha, which is a reduction of less than 2% from 2023. Overall, since 2020, the tillage area has increased by more than 19,000 ha, or approximately 6%. We need to continue to support it. I am determined to work on a cross-Government basis to do that.
Sentiment score: 0.47
I could not agree more. I have said previously in the House that I see agriculture as a gearbox within which all the different enterprises, including tillage, dairy, beef, sheep and pigs, are interlinked and interdependent. Should one sector of that gearbox stop working, it impacts on everything else. Tillage is a key component of that. The sector has been through a tough time. To be a tillage farmer involves a massive outlay on machinery costs. There are big overheads and margins have been extremely tight. We want to continue working with the sector to support it and grow the value-added opportunities in this space. The Deputy mentioned the nearly carbon-zero nature of tillage farming. The sector has a great story to tell in terms of its carbon footprint, its positive role in regard to cover crops and the role it plays in helping us reach our climate targets. We will continue to support the tillage sector throughout this term.
Sentiment score: 0.12
When I came into this role ten weeks ago, I looked at the situation with ACRES. It is unacceptable that 2,800 of the farmers who signed up to a contract back in 2023 have still not had their applications processed and that there are problems with the system. In 2024, there were 14,500 farmers who had not had their advance payments issued. That was unacceptable. I worked with the officials to look at the challenges in the system around the very complex nature of processing these new applications and getting the new system in place. It was an ambitious approach to move to a results-based environmental system but, ultimately, farmers are delivering for us in a significant way. They are delivering for our environment and they must be supported. That is why I put an extra focus on this. I sought extra staff to be allocated. I visited the unit in Johnstown Castle in Wexford to support the staff and officials there who were working in very difficult circumstances dealing with farmers who were frustrated, and rightly so. I understand the frustration there. My determination has been to fix this for them as quickly as possible. A total of €247.4 million has been paid to 42,631 participants, or 95% of all ACRES participants, in respect of their participation in the scheme in 2023. A further 2,302 farmers - although these figures are from last week's issue because that is now down to 1,800 farmers - who participated in 2023 have yet to receive their final payments because we did a payment run on the 2023 ones last week. We are in a space now where we are at 9,300 for the 2024 payments and we are making weekly payment runs. Since I took office almost ten weeks ago, we have reduced it by almost 40%. I understand where farmers are at. It is a continuing priority for me that we continue to work and I hope to have the vast majority of farmers sorted by the end of May, with the most difficult cases ended by the end of June.
Sentiment score: -0.02
There is no doubt that, when a new agri-environmental scheme commences at the start of a CAP process, it brings a lot of teething problems. I remember that GLAS in 2015 struggled in that first year. It is a big undertaking. We had a number of different measures coming together at this one time. Let me be clear. While I am pointing to the momentum I have managed to build in this process in the ten weeks I have been in my role, I will not rest until every farmer is sorted. I want to see that happen. We are on track to make the balancing payments that are due to be paid in May. I am going to make sure that they are done as well and that the vast majority of farmers outstanding will have their issues resolved and payments made by the end of May, with the most difficult cases to be fixed by the end of June. The solutions I am looking to put into place are permanent ones whereby these problems for farmers will not recur. The IT functionality is built around these solutions so that they are not one-off interventions. I want to restore farmers' confidence in ACRES.
Sentiment score: 0.07
The Deputy is articulating the frustration that is felt by many farmers across the country. The points he raised are not ones I am hearing for the first time. We will have the Presidency of the EU in the second half of 2026, and in my determination as Minister, right at the time of the AGRIFISH Council when the other 26 ministers for agriculture are all looking to agree the new CAP, Ireland will have significant influence in those negotiations. At the heart of the new CAP that I want to see developed is simplification. I know it has been talked about a lot in the past, but it has not been delivered. We are quite constrained by the costs incurred-income forgone model, which is an impediment. That is not what REPS was. I was in REPS; I remember how great it was. It was on a whole-farm basis. The costs incurred-income forgone model restricts how we can design schemes, in that we cannot pay farmers unless there is additional conditionality. That has meant, in terms of the beef, sheep and agri-environmental schemes, that there is conditionality if we are to get money to farmers. That is a significant impediment. It is something I would love to revisit as part of CAP reform. On the basic point about ACRES, we will get there, and I want to see ACRES farmers paid, able to commit fully to the scheme and see it developed strongly into the future.
Sentiment score: 0.14