Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Farrell for raising this matter. I can confirm that Teagasc has submitted a preliminary proposal to my Department to establish a centre for sustainable animal and grassland research at Moorepark in Fermoy. The new centre will replace the existing, out-of-date grassland laboratory and metabolism house facilities in Moorepark. Teagasc developed this proposal with the objective of facilitating research that can provide innovative solutions to improve the environmental sustainability of our very good pasture-based systems.

I was pleased last week to attend a Teagasc event to announce that the FBD Group has agreed to provide €6 million towards the development of the centre. This is a very significant contribution by the group and a welcome development for farmers and the agriculture sector in general. I thank the FBD Group for its very generous financial support towards this project.

Teagasc will now be engaging in detailed planning and design of the new centre, which will be subject to the normal approvals process and controls for capital projects in the public sector as set out in the public spending code. I also add that last week we announced that the new centre will be called the Padraig Walshe centre for sustainable animal and grassland research in recognition of his contribution to Irish farming, and indeed at the time of his untimely passing he was chair of FBD. This €6 million towards this project has come forward from the FBD Group in recognition of his legacy. I look forward to the detailed plans being developed in the months ahead and their submission to my Department for approval, in consultation with the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform.

I commend Teagasc on bringing the project to this stage of development. We are very fortunate, as I am sure Deputy Farrell will agree, to have an organisation like Teagasc to support farmers on the journey to drive down greenhouse gas emissions and further improve the sustainability of the agriculture sector. It is very important it continues to play a very significant role, which it has always done so well, in producing food.

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