Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for the update. He mentioned a little bit about feed and fuel, and that is crucial for the whole sector. Seeds will play a pivotal role in the process, and the Minister of State talked about the availability of seeds to grow crops. We are supposed to declare an interest when we talk about particular matters in the House . My family owns a small seed company. My mother started the company because seeds are fundamental to food. Without seeds, we simply do not have any food, be it plant- or animal-based. We need to secure seeds not only for this year but for future harvests. If we are concerned about the import of wheat at the moment then I am wondering if the Department is giving the same consideration to the concern around the importation of seed for wheat. Are there plans to save the seed from the crops that will be harvested this year and in the years that follow as well?

Has that been a consideration of the Department so far? We have seen figures for how much wheat we import and how much of that comes from Ukraine and Russia. Have we done the same type of analysis of seed imports as well and where they are from globally? I am not aware of them.

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