Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for the presentation, which was very much to the point. There needs to be standardisation of the criteria for qualifying as an organic farmer. The quality assurance scheme operated by Bord Bia is an excellent opportunity for farmers, given Bord Bia is visiting a significant number of farms every 18 months. The opportunity to get that scheme intertwined with the organic regime must be taken. It could be an add-on to the quality assurance inspection for farmers who want to opt in to the scheme. There are farmers undertaking beef inspections and dairy inspections. If they also wanted to opt for organic inspections, this could be done on the same day. The criteria for qualifying as an organic farmer need to be standardised. Various organisations are looking for different standards. As a result, the position must be standardised if we want to make progress. Bord Bia must become a lot more proactive. The quality assurance scheme is the vehicle we can use to streamline the inspection regime so the inspection can be done on the same day as the quality assurance inspections. It is clearly linked to the last recommendations made by the committee. This is something we need to drive home in order to ensure it is delivered upon. It is only common sense. It would lower the cost of inspections and the wider cost of the regime, and would have serious benefits.

I was surprised to hear about the clash between GLAS and organic farming payments. Organic farmers are farming in the spirit of GLAS, so when I hear that farming organically is inhibiting farmers from getting payments that are available under the scheme, the common sense of that escapes me. Perhaps GLAS has to be adapted to suit organic farmers. To have a farmer on a low input system getting a greater payment than an organic farmer does not make sense and there is no logic to that kind of regime. Organic farming and GLAS need to become more intertwined.

On the issue of the consumption of organic products, what kind of premium is being returned from the marketplace? Deputy Penrose hinted at consumer resistance. Across the various products, including dairy, sheep, beef, lamb, turkey, eggs, farmhouse cheeses and a whole variety of organic products, is there consistency in the level of premium that can be returned or are some sectors able to absorb a premium far better than others? On the dairy side, this country has a very small proportion of organic output whereas there is a far higher proportion in other sectors. Has research been done into the consumer response and how much of a mark-up the consumer will take? What kind of mark-up do producers of organic food need to have in order to make it commercially viable when compared with mainstream farming? How many farmers are involved in it and is there potential to grow the sector? As has been hinted, other countries are far in front of us as regards organic produce. Have we a handle on what is needed from the marketplace to make it viable?