Ministers at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine have announced calls for two new European Innovation Partnerships (EIPs), on generational renewal and digital technologies.
The calls were opened by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue and Minister of State for land use and biodiversity Pippa Hackett.
EIPs are EU schemes that allow for collaboration between farmers, researchers, and other stakeholders on a range of issues related to environmental and social issues in farming.
The two new EIPs are called ‘Promoting Generational Renewal on Irish Farms’ and ‘Fostering the Use of Digital Technologies on Irish Farms’.
The EIP initiative is co-funded by the European Commission and the Irish government under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Strategic Plan. The department will fund payments to farmers as well as the operational groups’ administrative costs.
The operational groups involve a range of stakeholders (farmers, advisors, researchers, and non-government organisations) coming together to trial solutions to specific issues.
Each of the two new calls will see the selected projects funded for a period of between three and five years, with a maximum budget allocation of ā¬650,000 per project.
The closing date for expressions of interest under these new calls is 5:00p.m on November 4, 2024.
Both ministers are inviting operational groups to submit expressions of interest across the two themes.
Commenting on the new EIPs, Minister McConalogue said: “The new round of EIPs under Irelandās CAP Strategic Plan 2023-2027 will build on the success of the previous 57 projects under the RDP (Rural Development Programme), outputs from which have already been integrated into the current CAP Strategic Plan through the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES).
“I look forward to seeing the innovation, advancements and policy-guiding initiatives that will be achieved through this latest call which will cover the areas of generational renewal and the greater use of digital technologies in farming in Ireland,” Minister McConalogue added.
Minister Hackett said: “Following on from previous EIP calls, I am delighted to announce the next round of these calls across the themes of generational renewal and the use of digital technologies.
“EIPs are a great way to bring farmers and other stakeholders together to develop new and innovative ways to tackle the many existing and emerging challenges faced by the agriculture sector, and for local groups and communities to identify local solutions to local challenges,” Minister Hackett commented.