Brian Leddin (Limerick City, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses from DG AGRI and I thank Mr. Santini for his insights and answers up to this point. I wish to broaden out the issue a little bit if I can and to ask why we are so dependent on this fertiliser. I represent the Green Party. We have a particular view in that we would like to see a very significant increase in organic farming where these artificial inputs are not used. We need to go down that road to a greater extent than we currently have. Approximately 2% of our farms are organic and we are going to aim for about 7.5%. Other countries are quite ahead of us. We had a session in this committee in the past few months, and most members of this committee would agree that we probably can and should be going much further in organic. The Austrians and Danes are doing quite well and I see no reason why we cannot do as well as them.

The reality is that these artificial fertilisers are having a devastating effect locally on watercourses. According to our own Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, approximately 43% or 44% of our rivers are in a condition of poor quality and there is a correlation with the use of artificial fertilisers.

There is the climate impact as well. There is the climate impact because there is the nitrous oxide, which is 200 or 300 times more potent as a gas than carbon dioxide. When the fertiliser oxidises, this gas is produced and it is very harmful. In addition, using these inputs allows us to grow more grass and have higher stocking rates in our farms. That has a knock-on increase on the methane that we produce. All in all, it seems to make sense to drive the organic angle as much as we can for environmental reasons, and to protect farmers as well from this significant volatility they are experiencing at the moment.

Mr. Santini mentioned the Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, strategic plan. This is very significant. We should be using the CAP strategic plan to drive the organic farming agenda in Ireland. Our Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is developing a fertiliser alternatives strategy. We will try to go from 410,000 tonnes in 2018 down to less than 325,000 tonnes. That is about a 33% decrease in artificial fertiliser within the decade.

Can Mr. Santini comment on that point on organics? It is a difficult thing to do. Farmers cannot switch to organics overnight. I accept that it is not easy. However, it makes sense in the longer term. Some farmers are going down that road and are managing to eliminate significant input costs.

They are producing as much food as they were beforehand but with reduced labour costs. There will also be an expected improvement in the local environment. Perhaps Mr. Santini could comment on our ambition in organics. Is it something we should drive as much as we can?