The recent publication of a national strategy for Ireland’s food and drinks sector, Food Vision 2030, must be backed by proper investment, according to the Irish Farmers Association (IFA).
While welcoming the strategy, which sets out Ireland’s ambition to grow agri-food exports from €14 billion to €21 billion by 2030, the IFA said that until the government sets out its plans to fund it, this strategy ‘will ring hollow’.
Commenting, IFA president, Tim Cullinane said: “The focus of this strategy is very much on the three pillars of sustainability: economic, environmental and social.
“Incomes are currently unsustainable in the drystock and tillage sectors. The outcome to the European element of the CAP reform proposals will make this worse rather than better.
“What farmers want to see is what funding the government intends to make available to back up this strategy,” he said.
He added that the government must come forward with its plan to support these sectors with maximum co-financing of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and deliver on its commitment to invest €1.5 billion of the carbon-tax fund into a proper agri-environment scheme.
“It is clear that the world will need more food in the coming years. Ireland is well placed to play a part in meeting this increased demand. Farmers recognise this has to be done sustainably, and they will continue to play their part,” he said.
In addition to a full economic impact assessment of the proposed measures in Food Vision 2030, there must also be an assessment of the upcoming Climate Action Plan measures, the CAP National Strategic Plans, and the European Green Deal, he added.
“These plans are being announced with lofty targets, but no proper assessment of how these targets will impact farm incomes, food production or global food security has been conducted,” he said.
“There is a commitment in this strategy to carry out an impact assessment of the proposed measures. This must commence immediately and include a review of CAP measures, which will devastate the incomes of some of our most productive farmers,” the IFA president concluded.