Results 13,841-13,860 of 23,967 for speaker:Charlie McConalogue

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Beef Industry (17 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 241 and 242 together. My Department has a statutory responsibility to approve slaughter plants in accordance with the European Union (Food and Feed Hygiene) Regulations 2020. Such approval is neutral on whether or not additional slaughter capacity is required, rather it assesses premises in accordance with meeting the strict criteria laid down in the EU...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Proposed Legislation (17 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The Bill to which the Deputy refers lapsed with the dissolution of the last Dáil and Seanad.  The Bill had failed to meet the criteria to be provided with a money message.  

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (17 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The Central Statistics Office (CSO) carry out a census of agriculture every 10 years and a Farm Structure Survey (FSS) every 3 to 4 years. According to CSO data, the average farm size has remained relatively stable over the past decade or more with the average farm size of 32.7 hectares in 2010, 32.5 hectares in 2013 and 32.4 hectares in 2016. Over the same period, the number of farm holdings...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: EU Regulations (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: EU Regulation 2019/6 on veterinary medicinal products comes into effect in January 2022. This Regulation is binding in full and has direct effect on all Member States. There is limited national discretion available to Member States in relation to a number of the Regulation's articles. In 2004, European legislation established a requirement that all veterinary medicinal products that are...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Animal Diseases (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The Connemara Pony Breeders Society (CPBS) has been approved by my Department to maintain the Studbook for Connemara Ponies and in this regard operates a breeding programme for the breed. Research carried out by the Connemara Pony Breeders Society, in conjunction with Weatherby's has enabled them to test for the presence of the HWSD gene. My Department has allocated funding to the...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Animal Carcase Disposal (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: A fallen animal is defined by my Department as an animal which has died on a farm, for reasons other than being slaughtered for human consumption or killed as part of disease control measures. The number of on farm fallen animal deaths as notified to the Department since 2016 are set out below. - *On Farm Deaths Stillborn Combined Total ...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Basic Payment Scheme (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: In 2019, the person named claimed one hectare in respect of the appurtenant grazing rights.  He already had enough other lands to cover his payment entitlements in 2019 so there was no overclaim. In 2020, he claimed 31.17 hectares for the same grazing rights but does not have enough other lands to cover all his payment entitlements.  The Department has...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Proposed Legislation (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: At its meeting of 27 July, the Government approved my Memorandum seeking approval to draft an urgent amendment to the Agriculture Appeals Act, 2001 along the lines of the Heads of Bill presented. This will reform the forestry appeals process by bringing it into line with similar planning processes and is one of the commitments in the Programme for Government. The Bill foresees the...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Animal Breeding Regulations (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: I believe this is a sector that has significant potential to grow and develop providing increased returns to the economy My Department is fully committed to maximising the potential of the Sport Horse industry and continues to provide support to it financially and with policy initiatives. I have demonstrated my commitment to the industry by increasing the budget allocated to Horse...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Brexit Preparations (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 159 and 172 together. My Department's Brexit preparedness work has resulted in various supports being introduced over successive budgets to help the agri-food and fisheries sectors mitigate the impact of Brexit. These include supports in the form of direct aid, as well as the provision of low-cost loans such as the €300...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The agri-food sector is Ireland’s most important indigenous exporting industry, playing a vital role in the economy. 137,000 farms produce over €8 billion in output; and we have over 770,000 hectares of forest and over 2,000 fishing vessels & aquaculture sites. The agri-food supply chain stretches from rural and coastal areas all across Ireland to the UK, Europe and...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Dairy Sector (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Ireland’s dairy exports performed strongly in 2019 with CSO figures for the year indicating a +12.4% volume growth and +9.9% value growth compared to 2018. I am determined to ensure notwithstanding the challenges facing the agri-food sector, especially in the current context of the Covid 19 pandemic that opportunities for the dairy sector to build on this performance are maximised. ...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The Programme for Government, which sets a clear ambition around climate action, also explicitly references the special economic role of agriculture in rural Ireland. Targeted supports for the beef and dairy sectors over recent years have focused on improving the economic performance of the sectors, while also improving environmental sustainability. The Beef Data Genomics Programme,...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The pursuit and development of new markets for Irish agri-food exports is an ongoing and central component of the strategic development of the agri-food sector as set out in Food Wise 2025, and is of particular relevance given the need to diversify our markets and to reduce our exposure to the UK market in the light of Brexit.  Over the last number of Budgets increased...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The Programme for Government commits to an average 7% per annum reduction in overall greenhouse gas emissions from 2021 to 2030 (a 51% reduction over the decade) and to achieving net zero emissions by 2050. Every sector is expected to contribute to meeting this target by implementing policy changes, and the special economic and social role of agriculture and the distinct characteristics of...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The Programme for Government includes a commitment to: Ensure fairness, equity, and transparency in the food chain by establishing a new authority called the National Food Ombudsman (NFO) to enforce the Unfair Trading Practices Directive. This new authority will enforce EU-wide rules on prohibited unfair trading practices in the food supply chain and will have powers to enforce this...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Tuberculosis Eradication Programme (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Following many successful years of reducing bovine TB levels to the benefit of Irish farmers, there has been a concerning incremental increase in the disease since 2016. This has continued in 2020 with further increases in herd incidence and reactor numbers observed. Herd incidence (on a 12-month rolling basis) has breached 4% for the first time since 2012 and reactor numbers have exceeded...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Tuberculosis Incidence (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Ireland has had many successful years of reducing bovine TB levels to the benefit of Irish farmers. However there has been a concerning incremental increase in the disease since 2016. This has continued in 2020 with further increases in herd incidence and reactor numbers observed. Herd incidence (on a 12-month rolling basis) has breached 4% for the first time since 2012 and reactor numbers...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: Developing increased third country market access and furthering trade opportunities around the world are both integral parts of my Department’s response to the challenges posed by Brexit.  These goals are aligned with the strategic market development theme of Food Wise 2025, which outlines the significant opportunities for growth of...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Industry (16 Sep 2020)

Charlie McConalogue: The National Farmed Animal Health Strategy 2017-2022 was launched in 2017.  At the Strategy’s heart is the ambition to shift the focus from response to and management of animal disease, to the promotion of animal health as a driver of optimised production, improved margins for producers and providing the best quality food for consumers. The Strategy recommends some 70 strategic...