Minister of State with responsibility for land use and biodiversity, Pippa Hackett has welcomed the allocation of up to €500 million specifically ringfenced for agri-environment schemes in Budget 2023, including an increased allocation of €37 million for the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS).
Commenting on the 80% increase in funding for the OFS, Minister Hackett said: “The government is committed to bringing the total agricultural area under organic production to 7.5% by 2027.
“The 2023 budget sees an allocation of €37 million to organic farming, which is an unprecedented increase, and reflects the level of interest among farmers in organics.
“My department has implemented a range of policy measures over the past two years to increase participation in organic farming.
“Even before significantly enhanced rates were announced for organics as part of the next CAP [Common Agricultural Policy] Strategic Plan, we saw a 20% increase in applications to join the Organic Farming Scheme in 2022 in comparison to 2021, bringing in an expected additional 17,000ha,” Hackett added.
Overall, the junior minister said that there has been an increase of 35% of land being farmed organically over the last two years.
Forestry in Budget 2023
The minister indicated that there has been strong support for forestry in Budget 2023, with an allocation of over €112 million.
She said: “I am delighted to have secured a significant increase in the allocation for forestry for 2023, with the funding going from €100 to €112 million this year.
“This funding will support those in the current Forestry Programme who continue to receive premiums, and will fund those new forest owners who plant under the next programme.
“We need to sustainably manage those forests we already have, and we also need to plant significant numbers of new forests.
“This increased budget allocation will encourage a healthy forestry sector which will help deliver on our climate, biodiversity, economic and recreational objectives,” Minister Hackett added.
The minister has said that she will be working with the Minister of Public Expenditure and Reform and other cabinet colleagues to ensure that the new Forestry Programme will provide sufficient incentive for landowners and especially farmers to contribute to a national effort to plant 8,000ha/yr.
The new programme is expected to public consultation as part of the Strategic Environmental Appropriate Assessment process shortly.
“This will complement the extensive consultation we have already had on preparing the Shared National Vision, which informs the Forest Strategy currently in preparation,” Hackett continued.
“That consultation showed that there is a positive attitude among the public towards our forests, as well as a desire for the expansion of the forest estate.
“We have worked very hard this year to address the issues with the forestry licensing system, and we are now on track to substantially increase the licencing output for this year compared to last year.”
Horticulture
Minister Hackett also welcomed a funding of €10 million for the horticultural sector.
It’s understood, support will also be available under the Brexit Adjustment Reserve (BAR) for the sector, supporting areas such as mushroom and seed potatoes.
Minister Hackett commented: “Our domestic horticultural growers play a vital role in producing safe, nutritious and local food in an environmentally sustainable manner.”
Commenting on the allocation of funding for European Investment Partnerships (EIPs), Minister Hackett said:
“The success of the current EIPs under the RDP [Rural Development Pan] has been widely recognised, and I was delighted to secure a substantial budget allocation for EIPs in 2023 of €21 million.
“Some of the existing EIPs are coming to the end of their project terms, and we will be issuing a new Call for Proposals in 2023 under the new CAP Strategic Plan.”
There is expected to be a public consultation and a conference before the end of this year to identify possible themes for the 2023 Call for Proposals.
“I expect the proposed themes for our next ‘call’ to include environmental priorities, as well as issues such as animal welfare, farm safety and improving the gender a balance in Irish farming,” Minister Hackett concluded.