Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House to discuss this important issue and I thank him for outlining actions taken under the national mitigation plan in respect of agriculture, food and the marine. It is clear that we must all be mindful and responsible citizens. That is the direction in which the conversation is moving, from the top to the bottom. When we try to address problems, the starting point is often identifying the party to blame and then pointing the finger. The big bad wolf in recent public discourse has been agriculture. That is very unfair. I have mentioned this matter at the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine and elsewhere. I do not question the bone fides of the Citizens' Assembly, but I feel it was not presented with a fair picture in the context of agriculture. The Minister cited the fact that carbon emissions from agriculture and food production has decreased by 3.5% since 1990, while output has increased by 40%. Output has increased but carbon emissions have decreased. Equally, we know that some of our systems for dairy and beef are excellent. We are top of the class for dairy and we are near to the top for beef in terms of our carbon footprint.

The Minister outlined some of the measures that have been overseen by his Department. Every single farming scheme devised has to take on board the idea of sustainability, the potential environmental impact, and increasingly how it can serve to reduce our carbon emission reduction objectives. Farmers know all about this and they know all about the challenges involved. They operate at the coalface.

There has been cold weather again recently. Animals had to be housed as early as September in some cases, which led to clear problems. If we are to bring every single stakeholder on board - including farmers - we should start to ground our conversations in reality when we ask people to take certain actions. We cannot suddenly ask them to go from zero to 100 without providing a roadmap. We have to empower farmers to make the necessary changes so that they can be more carbon-neutral in their activities. The blame game puts many people, not just farmers, off, particularly when they really have been pushed to the pin of their collars in terms of commodity volatility in respect, for example, of milk and beef production. Farmers are working to the tightest of margins, and they are really trying. They should get credit for that.

The dialogue we are having cannot focus solely on agriculture. The message must be communicated to the broader public that farmers, farming organisations, Teagasc and departmental officials are doing good work and that there is a very real drive towards addressing issues.

In terms of the European perspective, I am just back from a trip to Brussels with the joint committee. The Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development painted a very stark picture for us. The reality is that there is a very big environmental lobby now which is extremely proactive and media savvy. I do not want to take from its objectives or intentions, but the reality is that more and more will be demanded from farmers under the new Common Agricultural Policy, CAP. That does not take into account the targets we have to meet. More and more schemes will have to have other dimensions to show that they are environmentally friendly. Anybody telling us that we are grand and that we should keep going as we are is incorrect. There is no doubt that it has to be ramped up. There will be extra costs involved, and I believe that is a debate we need to have. We have to stand behind our farmers.

Britain is pulling out of the European Union, and there will be a substantial reduction in the new budget. We have to begin by capturing our budget, and if new measures, whether for water quality or biodiversity, are being introduced for farmers, money will be required. We are asking farmers to act for the greater good of society. We need to talk about all of that, and continue to bring farmers on board.

In the environmental analysis conducted by the Minister's Department, the establishment of a sustainability sub-committee to monitor environmental impacts relating to the Food Wise strategy was recommended. Where do matters stand in that regard? It is essential that we keep moving in the right direction and that we anticipate any difficulties as we try to produce food. It has been stated already, but I reiterate that we are producing food in the most sustainable way. We need to be fed and it is by means of sustainable farming methods that we should produce our food.

I already alluded to the bad weather. There is concern among farmers that there will be a fodder shortage. Teagasc is carrying out an assessment of the amount and quality of fodder available. When farmers are obliged to house animals from early September in anticipation of a long winter, we know that some may get into difficulty. I suggest that this is part of the fallout from climate change. The Minister might give some assurance to farmers regarding the actions he is taking on this issue. He might also outline the options available to farmers if they have hungry animals or if there is an animal welfare issue. I look forward to the Minister's response.