Willie Penrose (Westmeath, Labour)
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Question 153: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food the proportion of agricultural land currently used for the production of organic foodstuffs; the steps she is taking to increase land used for organic farming; the target for the production of organic foodstuffs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34182/05]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The percentage of agricultural land under organic production in Ireland currently stands at just under 0.7%. The original timescale for a target of 3% of the land area in organic production by 2006 has been extended to 2010, on the advice of the national steering group.

To attract additional numbers into the organic sector, my Department provides substantial financial support through REPS and the scheme of grant aid for the development of the organic sector. The organic supplementary measure in REPS 3 was redesigned to provide maximum flexibility for those entering the sector.

Organic farmers participating in REPS can avail of additional payments under the organic supplementary measure. On top of the basic REPS rate, an organic farmer gets an extra €181 per hectare up to 55 hectares during the two year conversion period and €91 per hectare once he or she has reached full organic status. Thus an organic farmer with 55 hectares can get an annual payment of €18,505 a year for the first two years and €13,555 each year for the rest of his or her time in the scheme. Organic farmers got €4 million in REPS payments in 2004. Since REPS began in 1994, it has delivered some €31 million to the sector.

My Department also operates the scheme of grant aid for the development of the organic sector, which supports investment both on-farm and off-farm. For on-farm investments, grant aid can be given for 40% of the cost up to a maximum grant of over €50,000. For off-farm investments, the maximum grant is over €500,000.

One of the recommendations in the organic development committee report was the establishment of demonstration farms. This initiative has been very successful to date, as these farms provide a useful means of disseminating information and data to existing and potential organic operators. Valuable financial and practical production data can also be collected, as the farms participate in the Teagasc national farm survey and the Teagasc monitor farm network.