Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 965: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food the countries within the EU with which he has established common cause in the matter of ensuring the viability of the agriculture sector throughout Ireland and Europe with particular reference to the need to ensure adequacy and security of supply throughout the European Union and limiting the extent of carbon causing imports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11294/09]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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At the Councilof Agriculture Ministers meeting in Brussels on 29 September 2008, the issue of Climate Change was included in the agenda at my request. I voiced my concerns about the challenge posed by the EU's Climate Change proposals for agriculture and the food sector in Ireland and throughout the E U. I reminded my colleagues of the vital role of EU agriculture in underpinning food security both within the Union and globally. Within the Council it was clear that Agriculture Ministers recognised the importance of ensuring that the EU's policy objectives for the agriculture and food sectors were upheld in the context of Climate Change negotiations.

As I indicated at the Council of Ministers meeting, I am firmly of the view that reducing Ireland's agricultural production in order to meet greenhouse gas targets will not reduce global emissions. Ireland's pasture based agricultural production systems are very efficient in terms of the ratio of greenhouse gas per unit of food produced. Any fall in Irish beef and dairy output would probably be replaced, on the European and global markets, by food from countries where production systems are far less sustainable and where the carbon footprint of that food is significantly higher than that of food produced in Ireland.

World demand for food is growing with the possibility of a doubling of meat and dairy consumption, globally, by 2050. I am committed to ensuring that our agriculture and food sectors are in a position to respond to these opportunities, both in the interest of global food security and any market opportunities that may arise. I am conscious of the importance of underpinning food security and ensuring our agricultural sector is sustainable and resilient against the background of emerging global challenges such as Climate Change.

My Department continues to explore various emission mitigation opportunities in the agriculture and food sectors and has committed significant funding to research greenhouse gas emission abatement opportunities.