Mr. Richard Kennedy:

I thank the Chair and the committee for the opportunity to address them this evening on carbon sequestration and storage in agriculture.

At Devenish, we have a track record of research and development, R&D, in this area and have carried out research in the forensic measurement of carbon stocks, both above and below ground, at our ruminant research farm in Dowth, County Meath. This has been ongoing since 2013.

Forestry and agriculture are the only two industries that have the ability to remove carbon from the atmosphere biologically. Our research since 2013 has shown there are many options within the farming enterprise to not only increase carbon but increase the rate and consistency of carbon sequestration in soil. The first step in this process is to measure what carbon exists in our farms, that is, baseline individual farms.

Devenish is a research, development and innovation company. Our nutritionists develop and deploy solutions that ensure the most effective and efficient utilisation of nutrients in the production of food. Carbon is one of those nutrients. We take a collaborative approach, working in partnership with researchers, institutions, government bodies, our customers and suppliers, throughout the food supply chain. We utilise practical research and development, and have strength in delivering that in a commercially applicable manner in real time, thereby delivering sustainable food solutions in response to consumer demand for safe and nutritious food. Ireland has been at the forefront of this for years. We believe in a science-based approach to developing sustainable solutions for the agriculture and food industries. Through our strategy, One Health: from Soil to Society, we look at how we can positively influence human health and the environment through the provision of high quality, nutritious solutions.

Devenish was established in 1952 and acquired by the current management in 1997. We have grown the business over the years from 23 employees to 500. We have a proactive approach to human health and sustainability. We are particularly focused on improving human health throughout the food chain and have achieved this through collaborative R&D delivering innovative solutions.

This was evidenced in our omega-3 work, delivered in collaboration with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, which has proven that the regular consumption of naturally enriched omega-3 chicken and eggs can lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, dementia and depression. That was proactive health research in these days of reactive health solutions.

Devenish places sustainability at the heart of our business and is focused on creating products and services that help reduce the agriculture sector’s impact on the environment. Through collaboration, research and development we can deliver proactive, positive solutions. We believe a collective effort is required. Supplementing our manufacturing facilities across the globe, we have invested in a range of performance houses that deliver commercially applicable research to the market in a timely manner.

Every year, we make a significant investment in R&D, and it is the basis of our commercial application. It has developed solutions to the challenges faced by industry today and tomorrow. We have a team of more than 40 PhDs and experts developing products and we regularly collaborate with universities and external centres of excellence, including Queen’s University Belfast, University College Dublin, UCD, Harper Adams University, Wageningen University & Research, Agri-Food and Biosciences, AFBI, and Teagasc.

In 2013, we established our global innovation centre at Dowth. It is now an internationally recognised research farm dedicated to developing sustainable agricultural solutions and promoting human health through nutrition. It acts as a platform for public engagement and has been designated aninternational lighthouse farm, one of only 12 across four continents, that is leading the way in sustainable food production, by Wageningen in the Netherlands.

Our research farm at Dowth has been a platform for unique collaborations and we believe such collaborations are the future for agriculture in Ireland. We have collaborated with partners such as Teagasc and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and academic partners such as Wageningen, UCD, Queen’s and AFBI. We have used it to showcase the research we are doing on climate smart farming, biodiversity, economics, and human health to farmers and industry groups.

We have formed wider collaborations to explore solutions to climate change, including partnering with Gas Networks Ireland, KPMG and Teagasc on Project Clover. We also recently signed a unique collaborative research initiative on climate action with the team at Teagasc, led by Professor Frank O’Mara. We have also used the platform to engage with the Government and recently hosted a joint ministerial visit with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Charlie McConalogue, and the Minister for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland, Edwin Poots, alongside the Ulster Farmers' Union and the IFA.

Our research and development focus areas and on-farm innovations include carbon neutrality and annual whole-farm carbon balance sheets; managed soil improvement; water quality; silvopasture trials; and the benefits of multispecies grazing swards, such as increased biodiversity, soil health, water retention, animal performance and carbon sequestration, in addition to reduced fertilizer, parasitic burden and veterinary interventions. These are all focused on driving farm profitability, while delivering for the environment.

The growing environmental challenges facing food producers require a collective effort. We believe that we need to work together in new and unique collaborative networks, involving public, private and research organisations taking a research-led approach to assist farmers in making the necessary changes required to meet the climate challenge head-on. Carbon sequestration and storage in agriculture has the potential to give Ireland’s food and farming sector a significant competitive advantage in the global market, while delivering sustainable solutions.