Erin McGreehan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Following on from Senator Lombard's contribution, I call for a debate on food security in this House. I would like to hear from Ministers in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine; the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment; and the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. Considering that food security and the availability of high-quality, sustainable food is going to be one of the largest issues we have to face in the coming years, I think it is incumbent on us to have that debate in this House. There should be a focus on agriculture, obviously because we need to support the farmers and the people who are actually feeding this nation and, indeed, many other people around the world. There should also be a focus on the environment. I want to hear from the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications on how he is going to support this really important sector. I want to know whether that Department has looked at an evaluation of how the removal of land from productivity and the EU nature restoration law are going to impact on our productivity and on us, as an island nation, feeding our people and the people of Europe. I also want to hear from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. We all hear about the cost of living and the importance of bringing down the cost of food. Like the previous speaker, I fear those conversations, because our farmers do not receive adequate money for their produce. They are constantly operating at a loss. When we are having that conversation with the representatives of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, we always need to highlight what it is costing our farmers for high-quality food to be produced in this country. It is about time that we listened to all three of those Departments and had those debates in this House, because it is absolutely of national importance.