Five of the country’s largest farming organisations are collaborating in their efforts to tackle climate change.
The five groups will contribute to the reduction of greenhouse emissions from agriculture and the dairy sector.
In a joint statement from Dairy Industry Ireland, Irish Co-operative Organisation Society, Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association, Irish Farmers’ Association and Macra na Feirme also defended farmers’ rights to earn a living from dairy production.
“We vigorously defend the legitimate rights of farm families to profitably pursue milk production in a sustainable manner and warn against the unintended consequences of actions that will undermine the cost competitiveness of the Irish dairy sector,” the groups said.
“Restricting milk production from Ireland will increase global emissions; the introduction of policies that facilitate this to happen will increase climate change.”
The organisations warn that the dairy sector makes a significant contribution to the rural and national economy, to international exports and provides employment.
They claim the sector supports 17,000 farms, 60,000 jobs and has an output worth €11.3 billion, with exports valued at €5.2 billion.
“We highlight that climate change is a global issue and warn against the risk of carbon leakage, given that international demand for dairy products and ingredients are increasing year on year due to a growing global population and socio-economic factors,” the groups concluded.
LSL News.