Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 552: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the progress made in relation to the programme for Government proposal to increase the level of funding committed to agri-food research to more than €641 million under the National Development Plan with a further €289 million for investment in capital infrastructure and marketing for the food industry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28607/08]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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The National Development Plan 2007-2013 commits €641m to Agri-Food Research. This funding is allocated via my Department's Core Grant to Teagasc and via the DAFF public good competitive programmes in Food, Agriculture and Forestry. In addition, the Interdepartmental Committee on Research and Technological Development provided a sum of €40m in 2007-08 for research collaboration in areas of shared interest. DAFF secured €13.67m from this fund for agri-food research. DAFF are currently in discussions with the IDC regarding the work programme for 2009.

In the area of food research, significant collaborative research initiatives in the areas of Marine Functional Foods (with the Marine Institute) and Food And Health (with the Health Research Board) were launched in 2007. The Marine Functional Foods initiative with the Marine Institute was awarded to a Teagasc led research consortium in November 2007.

Awards amounting to €20m under the collaborative research initiatives with the Health Research Board in the theme areas of "Food safety Monitoring and Surveillance", "Nutrigenomics", "Food Consumption databases" and "Nutritional Health in the Elderly" were made in December 2007.

A call for proposals under the Department's capital investment scheme for marketing and processing of agricultural products issued in December 2007. The sectors involved are Horticulture, Livestock Marts, Small Slaughterhouses and Meat Establishments. Evaluation of applications is currently underway.

The Capital Investment Scheme for the beef and sheep meat processing sectors was launched in April 2007. The package involved grant aid of €50 million. Enterprise Ireland, which is responsible for the management of the Scheme is currently completing its project evaluation process. In the Dairy Processing sector, capital investment grant aid of €114 million was also put in place last year. The projects are under way and a number have already been completed.