Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We should have such a debate in this House. To respond quickly, the answer is "yes" but we must bring farmers with us on that journey. Anybody advocating to just leave farming alone and as it is, without changing anything, does not understand the kind of markets into which we sell our food around the world. The reason Ireland has a good reputation globally as a sustainable and high-quality, safe food producer is we try to see ahead in terms of what consumers will demand in future. Consumers are going to demand a food product they can consume knowing it has been produced in a way that takes the environment and climate into account. We must bring farmers with us on this journey through new income opportunities that will emerge in this new era of greening agriculture.

See this speech in context