Mr. Paul Brophy:

The point was made that it is absolute nonsense to have to depend on imported peat. It would be even more nonsensical for the vegetable industry to close and Ireland to become dependent on other countries for our food. Food security is embedded into the programme for Government. Through the national development plan for horticulture, public funds have been invested in our businesses under grant schemes. If those businesses subsequently close because of this ludicrous legislation, that money will have been wasted. It is in all horticulture that the money has been invested.

On the issue of food, green waste is not suitable for propagating vegetable transplants or any other food product because there are heavy metals picked up in it which would be introduced into the food chain with very harmful effects. In our business growing vegetable transplants, we use a very specialist product. Every large-scale grower has developed a recipe that is product specific and site specific in terms of pH balance and nutrition. Switching suppliers is not a simple fix. It has taken us approximately four years to hone our on-site recipe for our business.