Dairy Industry Ireland (DII), the body which represents dairy processors in Ireland, has called for “fair policy and funding” in order to meet the emissions reduction target for agriculture.
It was announced yesterday (Thursday, July 28) that the agriculture sector will have to cut its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 25% by 2030, relative to 2018 levels.
Reacting to the news, DII has said that Irish dairy has an opportunity to “further increase and enhance its competitive advantage in global markets” through climate action, but also by sustaining economic opportunity in rural Ireland.
“The industry and its family farm suppliers have been driving programs for some time. It has further ambitious programs set out for the next decade and wishes to be integral to Ireland’s climate and economic journey.”
However, DII called on the government to deliver clarity on accounting mechanisms for emissions and to give Irish agriculture “credit where credit is due”.
The dairy industry group also urged the government to “move quickly” to put mechanisms in place to help Irish agriculture balance environmental targets while protecting the economic viability of the sector.
According to DII, the dairy industry is aiming to be the first sector of the Irish economy to have a plan to map its climate bill obligations.
However, funding and policy mechanisms on the part of government would be needed to achieve this through national funding and EU schemes.
“Clarity and fairness are critical” on the journey to meeting environmental obligations, the Ibec group argued.
DII cited a study they commissioned, which was carried out by EY (Ernst & Young), showing that the Irish dairy sector generated €13.1 billion in the state in 2020. This output was heavily concentrated in rural areas and supported 55,000 full-time equivalent jobs.
The report also noted Ireland’s competitive advantage in producing dairy, both under economic and environmental metrics.
Conor Mulvihill, the director of DII, commented: “While the targets set for agriculture and industry are hugely challenging, we welcome clarity and we will actively work with our suppliers and staff in our processing facilities to achieve metric-based improvements.
“In recent years the Irish dairy industry has navigated Brexit, Covid-19 and the Ukraine crisis and has come out even stronger, delivering for every parish on the island. While we do not underestimate the extreme challenge of these targets given existing technologies, we will strain every sinew to achieve them with our partners,” Mulvihill said.
The DII director concluded: “We call on government to give appropriate supports to enable us to positively achieve these targets and protect the social and economic sustainability of rural Ireland.”