The IFA has said that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report has highlighted the function Irish agriculture serves in taking climate action by utilising the carbon-efficient grass-based production systems of Irish farms to produce food.

The organisation’s president Tim Cullinan stated that the issue of carbon leakage must be addressed to prevent climate action being undone through the importing of food from less environmentally-friendly regions.

“By using our natural advantage to produce carbon-efficient foods, increasing the production of renewable energy on farms and with greater removal of carbon from the atmosphere, we can positively contribute to meeting the climate change challenge,” he said.

He also said that the recognition of agriculture’s potential to sequester carbon in the Climate Action Plan was important in ensuring that Ireland becomes climate neutral by 2050.

Carbon dioxide

The report has found that climate change is being driven primarily by the release of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels, according to the IFA.

A global approach must be taken, Cullinan explained, to avoid deforestation occurring to clear land for the production of food.

“The report is clear. We must limit the use of fossil fuels and stop deforestation if we have a chance to stop the effects of climate change and limit global warming."

Supports

However, Cullinan noted that adequate supports must be made available to farmers to allow for the transition to a more climate-friendly agricultural sector to take place.

“The report highlights the need to reduce methane and we will continue to work to reduce methane emissions in agriculture, but it’s vital that Government puts the structures in place to support farmers on this journey,” he concluded.