A new initiative has been launched by Teagasc which is to focus on the identification of the key technologies that have the potential over the next 20 years or so to aid the Irish agri-food sector.
The Technology Foresight Project aims to underpin competitiveness, sustainability and growth in the Irish agri-food sector over the next two decades.
This study will be of major importance in prompting Teagasc to look beyond the standard three-to-five-year timeframe, to think about what is possible in the long term and to develop strategies, policies and roadmaps for its research and innovation programmes, it says.
Teagasc says it will aim to assist the organisation in identifying the new areas of technology which it should prioritise for the long-term and the resulting implications for investment in new skills, equipment and infrastructure.
It will also bring together a wide diversity of people from different backgrounds to explore new ideas and to achieve consensus on the long-term challenges confronting the Irish agri-food and bioeconomy sector and its future technology needs.
The Minister for Agriculture, Simon Coveney said that continuing advances in science, technology and innovation will be central drivers of a profitable and sustainable agri-food sector.
Agri-food can continue to look forward to further growth and prosperity under the new Agri-Food 2025 Strategy being developed by an industry-led committee.
“It is critical that Teagasc continues to develop the new technologies which will be needed to underpin this growth,” the Minister said.
A Steering Committee of national and international experts is responsible for guiding the project anf the first meeting took place in Teagasc Ashtown today, Friday May 15, it says.
Tom Moran, the Chairman of the Steering Committee and former Secretary General of the Department of Agriculture said that it is recognised that the opportunities and risks associated with new technologies must be fully evaluated on a case-by-case basis against the specific problem or issue the technologies can address.
It will be vital for our scientists to fully communicate the outcomes of these evaluations to consumers, as, amongst other socio-economic considerations, consumer attitudes will be critical in determining the ultimate application of these technologies in agri-food.
Professor Gerry Boyle, Director of Teagasc, said that Teagasc has a responsibility to begin looking now at the many new technologies which are now beginning to impact on other sectors of the global economy.