Written answers
Thursday, 29 January 2026
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
- Food Industry
4. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will accelerate the amendment of the regulation for the Agri-Food Regulator to give the regulator the powers to compel... - Agriculture Industry
6. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will set out the specific steps he is taking in 2026 to reduce the administrative and regulatory burden on farmers, in light of... - Agriculture Supports
7. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the supports currently in place to address mental health challenges and loneliness among farmers in rural communities, including... - Agriculture Schemes
10. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of farmers that applied for the young farmer scheme in Cork; the number of farmers approved; the number refused; the... - Food Promotion
17. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will report on his efforts to promote the quality of Irish produce abroad. [6985/26] - Animal Welfare
18. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the position regarding the Animal Welfare Strategy 2026 – 2030; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5999/26] - Forestry Sector
19. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans to significantly increase afforestation of native Irish trees and meet afforestation targets in 2026; and if he will make a... - Beef Sector
20. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the procedures in place for testing imported beef for banned hormones; if he is satisfied that this procedure is working sufficiently;... - Agriculture Schemes
21. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the approval rate for the solar capital investment scheme under both Tranche 7 and Tranche 8 of TAMS 3; and if he will make a... - Agriculture Industry
22. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on the land use strategy from his Department’s perspective; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5370/26] - Bord Bia
24. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason the Government has failed to act decisively to remove the chair of Bord Bia (details supplied) in order to restore... - Greyhound Industry
26. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on the finding of a report by a consultancy firm that there is an ‘element of deadweight’ in prize money... - Agriculture Schemes
27. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of applications that were received, approved and rejected under the latest round of the Targeted Agriculture Modernisation... - Animal Diseases
30. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will urgently address the compensation ceilings currently in place for TB reactors; and if he will make a statement on the... - Trade Agreements
31. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he has spoken to MEPs in advance of votes in the European Parliament relating to the Mercosur trade agreement; and if he will make... - Animal Culls
32. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the plans his Department has to control the numbers of Sika deer, which have been designated as an invasive species; and if he will... - Agriculture Industry
34. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine following the publication of the Commission on Generational Renewal in Farming report, when he will publish a clear implementation... - Animal Diseases
35. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the action his Department is taking to ensure that farmers are made aware of new TB Action Plan changes that will come into effect on... - Common Agricultural Policy
36. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the outcome of the most recent discussions at the EU Agriculture Council in relation to the need to ensure that the CAP post-2027 will... - Agriculture Schemes
37. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to outline the number of applications accepted for the solar scheme under TAMS in 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter.... - Control of Horses
38. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has completed the final review of the control of horses legislation; if so, when the findings will be published; and... - Common Agricultural Policy
39. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will report on the public consultations planned by his Department in relation to the Common Agriculture Policy, post-2027; and... - Aquaculture Industry
40. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the way in which he and his Department will adhere to the EU Commission strategic guidelines for a more sustainable and competitive EU... - Food Industry
41. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on efforts taken to address concerns and login issues reported by farmer’s following changes made to the... - Fishing Industry
43. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the emergency supports his Department will provide to the Irish fishing and seafood sector in view of the drastic reductions to the... - Agriculture Schemes
44. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he intends to introduce additional ranking and selection criteria for the solar capital investment scheme; and if he will make a... - Harbours and Piers
48. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 262 of 26 November 2025, if he will provide an update on the accessibility audit now that... - EU Presidency
49. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the particular policies he has identified that need to be advanced at EU level while Ireland holds the Presidency of the EU; and if he... - Animal Welfare
50. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of authorised officers on animal cruelty based in the Regional Veterinary Office in Blackpool; and the number of... - Beef Sector
51. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he is satisfied with the current procedures in place for testing imported beef for banned hormones; and if he will make a statement... - Food Industry
52. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the amount of beef, pork, chicken, potatoes, milk, eggs imported into Ireland in 2025, by country of origin; and if he will make a... - Trade Agreements
53. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to outline the engagements he has had in relation to the EU-Mercosur trade agreement; and if he will make a statement on the matter.... - Forestry Sector
54. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of forestry licence applications submitted, approved and pending for Cork county from 2020 to date in 2026; and if he will... - Trade Agreements
56. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if his Department has performed an analysis on the potential impacts of the Mercosur trade deal on the Irish beef sector; and if he... - Agriculture Supports
57. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to increase the means available to make farming more viable for qualified farmers who must compete against commercial speculators, by... - Agriculture Schemes
58. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the approval rate for the solar capital investment scheme under Tranche 8 of TAMs 3; and if he will make a statement on the matter.... - Agriculture Supports
59. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to outline the supports available from his Department for agribusiness co-ops; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5475/26] - Animal Culls
60. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on whether there will be an eventual end to culling badgers as a result of the rollout of TB vaccination programmes; and if... - Fishing Industry
61. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans to engage with his European Union counterparts in view of the decision by France, the Netherlands, Germany, and Poland to... - Animal Welfare
62. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the specific measures being considered in the upcoming Animal Strategy Report 2026 - 2030 which closed earlier this month, to address... - Food Industry
63. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the procedure for the testing of meat entering the Irish market for banned hormones; and if he will make a statement on the matter.... - Organic Farming
64. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the current percentage of agricultural produce that was organic in 2025; the percentage of farmers in organic production; the plans to... - Fishing Industry
65. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the actions his Department is taking at European Union level to challenge the overfishing of shared migratory stocks such as mackerel... - Forestry Sector
66. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will conduct a review of the impact of drainage from forestry on the Feale river tributaries, particularly in relation to... - Harbours and Piers
67. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on the long-awaited and much needed dredging of Howth Harbour; the stage the project is currently at; when works are... - Agriculture Industry
68. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will consider permitting a second/separate person full access to the ‘MyAgFood’ Portal, alongside that of the... - Beef Sector
69. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views that all food products sold in Ireland and abroad as Irish beef is in fact Irish beef only as per label and is not... - Tillage Sector
70. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to outline the targeted funding measures being considered by his Department to support the tillage sector; his engagement to date with... - Fishing Industry
71. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will address concerns raised by fishing communities regarding the increasing presence of large foreign vessels operating off the... - Agriculture Supports
73. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the steps being taken by his Department to support farm families, particularly young farmers, in dealing with the rising costs of... - Trade Agreements
75. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine in view of the intensified campaign led by Independent Ireland representatives (details supplied), the reason the Government-aligned... - Forestry Sector
76. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the additional measures he is considering to increase non-industrial private planting of native Irish trees; and if he will make a... - Animal Diseases
77. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the current status of bovine TB nationally; whether incidence levels indicate that progress is being made under the TB eradication... - Fishing Industry
79. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the steps he is taking to address the acknowledged overfishing of mackerel by non-EU coastal States, which has directly contributed to... - Forestry Sector
81. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of new hectares of forestry planted in 2025 and the target for 2026. [6547/26]
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