Mr. Liam Herlihy:

I thank members for the questions. They all mentioned climate change. From my point of view and that of Teagasc, the train has left the station. With regard to farming in the future, from both image and sustainability perspectives, we must realise climate change is here. We also have Brexit to address. Instead of cursing in the dark, it is important to embrace it from a positive perspective.

It was queried whether we have to decrease stocking figures to stay within the limits. Agriculture has to be sustainable under three pillars: staying within the ambit of climate change requirements; staying within the ambit of sustainability, which covers water quality and the environment; and remaining profitable to ensure we have viable farm entities. In ensuring all of these, what is the role of Teagasc? It is very much in the area of mitigation and determining what to put in place to mitigate carbon emissions to ensure we have a vibrant agriculture sector for the future.

The major issue at the moment is the dairy sector. I am from a dairy background. It is important to recognise that the dairy sector is the sector that will be most challenged by virtue of the high stocking densities. What are we doing in this regard? The first options are the soft options. One is milk recording. Allied to that is the economic breeding index to ensure we have profitable and high-performing animals in the herd. Equally, it is important that we encourage more forestry on farms, particularly in the dairying area. We should also examine the replacement of fossil fuels from an energy-credit perspective.

I am conscious that our carbon emissions are lumped in with residential and transport emissions. From an agriculture perspective, we have to be responsible for areas within our ambit. A game-changer, if we are to make a very significant reduction is changing from the area of calcium ammonium nitrate, CAN, to stabilised urea. There is much scientific work being done on this. We all grew up with the spreading of slurry using a slash-plate system. We are now moving to the injector system or, more recently, the dribble bar. This is a huge area. We have got to be positive and proactive. We must ensure we have vibrant agriculture and a vibrant sector that will feed off agriculture. It is important that we achieve the growth targets set in Food Wise 2025. The role of Teagasc, as a scientific, independent researcher, is to examine the mitigating effects. We can have a two-pronged approach, involving our having vibrant agriculture while at the same time tackle carbon emissions from a positive perspective. Climate change is upon us and we owe it to ourselves and the next generation to deal with it.

I will deal with issues in the order in which they were raised. Deputy Penrose asked about the Kilkenny farm. It involves a programme I have been very passionate about, having being chairman of Glanbia group. I was its first chairman. The initiative has three stakeholders. It is important to remember Teagasc has done a splendid job there. It is a research entity. The lesson to be learned is that any mistakes made on the farm must not be replicated by the wider farming community. To date, it has explained everything that is happening in detail, including in regard to the turnout date, the number of kilogrammes fed, etc. I appreciate there was an air of concern in regard to the bad weather, the snowy period, in the early spring.