Grant funding of up to €500,000 is now available for high-efficiency milk pumps, saving the average farmer €1,440 in energy bills and 1.6t in reduced carbon emissions annually.
Minister for Communications, Climate Action and the Environment Richard Bruton announced the grant this morning (Monday, February 18).
Stating that the Government is committed to responding to climate change, Minister Bruton said he recently received approval to develop an “all-of-Government plan”, to make Ireland “a leader” in the global challenge.
The scheme is administered through the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI).
Minister Bruton said: “This is a great opportunity for dairy farmers to become more efficient and save money. It is one of the many practices in a farm where new ways of working can make a significant impact.”
Welcoming the investment, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed said: “This is an excellent example of a collaborative approach to driving the national sustainability agenda.
“Not only does this dairy equipment make climate sense, but it also makes sound economic sense at individual farm level and I urge farmers to engage fully with the scheme.”
L-R: Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Richard Bruton; Andrea Carroll, SME programme manager with SEAI; and Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed. Image source: Keith Arkins
Jim Gannon, CEO of the SEAI, said: “Over €1,000,000 of Government money has been made available to dairy farmers over the last three years.
Variable speed drive vacuum pumps can reduce energy consumption by 60% resulting in savings of over 10% on total farm energy costs.
“Energy efficiency can strengthen dairy farms by freeing up resources that can be invested in more productive activities and increase resilience to volatile milk prices.”
The Dairy Farm Grant complements the range of investment items available under the suite of seven measures that form the Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS II) available from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
Grants under the TAMS scheme can also include equipment to drive on-farm energy efficiency savings and the scheme remains open to applications.
Those interested in the grant funding can find further details on the SEAI website here.