Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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3424. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he had recent discussions with representative groups and other Departments in relation to the urgent need to resolve the difficulties facing the mushroom and horticulture sectors and the harvesting of peat; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41063/21]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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In relation to peat extraction, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has no involvement in its regulation. This is a planning process under the remit of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and an Integrated Pollution Control (IPC) license process, under the remit of the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment.

I continue to engage directly with the sector, most recently meeting with the Mushroom Industry on the issues they face. Minister of State Pippa Hackett has ongoing engagement directly with the horticulture sector across a range of issues, including peat use, involving meeting as well as site visits to commercial Mushroom, Amenity horticulture vegetable production sites. This includes meeting with members of the IFA Horticulture committee last October and specifically with the Mushroom and Amenity representatives in June. I also met with members of the sector in Monaghan and Wexford recently.

Furthermore, as the co chair of the Horticulture Industry Forum (HIF), Minister Hackett has met with the industry in October and April, where the Peat situation was also discussed.