The rising interest in organics would have been “unthinkable” a few short years ago, according to Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture Pippa Hackett.
Responding to the findings from the latest Irish Farmers Journal reader survey that as many as 50% of farmers are open to converting to organic farming, Minister Hackett said it’s “testament to the desire of so many farmers to farm with nature”.
She highlighted that the survey result is “very much in contrast to some of the very unhelpful and outdated narratives we’ve seen recently about farmers’ attitudes to the environment”.
Interest
Minister Hackett noted that she will be opening the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) for new entrants later this year.
“I would encourage anyone thinking of farming in this way to call into the organic tent at the Tullamore Show this weekend to chat to some of the experts about how organics could work on their own farm,” she suggested.
Forestry
The Irish Farmers Journal survey also found that one in five farmers would consider planting trees under the Government’s new forestry programme.
Responding to this farmer sentiment, the Minister said “forestry has come off the back of a difficult time, but we’ve turned a corner now”.
“The European Commission has approved the afforestation element of our programme, with much higher premium payment rates, and we hope to open for applications in the coming weeks.
“There’s good interest out there from farmers and the planting options on offer should enable farmers to plant the forest that suits their farm.
“The number of farmers considering forestry shows the potential for on-farm forestry to meet and exceed our forestry targets and I have no doubt that interest in forestry will grow with each year the programme is up and running,” she said.
SHARING OPTIONS