An additional €10 billion has been secured for farm modernisation under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan has said.
The additional funding is to go to research and agricultural modernisation over the lifetime of the next CAP budget, the commissioner added.
In an interview with AgriLand, Commissioner Hogan explained:
What we’ve got approval for in the budget is €10 billion over a seven-year period for research and innovation in the modernisation of agriculture.
“We’re looking at various ways that we can give value added to the primary producer through the bio-economy and the circular economy and through more innovative practices – and also looking at programmes to make sure that small and medium-sized farmers have an opportunity to participate in the agri-tech revolution, through precision agriculture and agricultural programmes.”
Funding boost
In response to a query from a farmer in the audience, questioning European commitment to research and innovation for Irish agriculture and improving farming methods, Commissioner Hogan said: “It is precisely because it is a concern to me that I got an additional €10 billion on farm modernisation for the 2020-2027 period.
Obviously you did not hear about it, because I have to announce it tonight – but we want to have programmes to be able to help farmers, irrespective of their size, to embrace modernisation and modern agriculture.
“There are a lot of people in this room who are probably some of the most progressive farmers in the country – embracing technology already – but we have to have everybody included; and therefore there will have to be schemes in Pillar II for technology and use of data – precision agriculture.
All of these are very important in terms of reducing the impact of some of the harmful materials that go into our soils.
“In terms of soil fertility and soil protection, that’s important; but, equally, it helps to improve the margin of profitability for the farmer when they have succeeded in getting over the initial capital investment.
“So, the use of technology and modernisation is clearly in the CAP proposal,” the commissioner concluded.