Paul Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the officials from the Department and thank them for their presentation. I would like to hear their opinions on what role the tillage sector can play in our efforts to achieve targets to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. As we are all aware, this committee has just completed a report on the future of the tillage sector and the crisis in which it finds itself as a result of the mass exodus of people out of the sector. When farmers leave the tillage sector, they invariably go into dairy or beef production. This does not help the cause of emissions reductions.

As a result of world prices, the lack of incentives in Ireland and farmers not seeing any viability in the sector, we are now in a situation whereby we import a large portion of our animal feed grain and barley from Russia and other places. While this may not be an Irish problem per sein the context of our targets and numbers, transporting a tonne of feed barley from Russia by road, rail and sea compared with it being produced in Ireland must have an enormous effect on emissions globally. I would like to hear how we might reverse the trend of people exiting the tillage sector in order that this might have a positive impact in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and how we might incentivise farmers to remain in the sector and produce, for example, energy crops, rather than their leaving and going into dairy or beef production. If this could be achieved, it would be a double advantage.