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For Oral Answer on : 26/09/2024
Question Number(s): 88 Question Reference(s): 38149/24
Department: Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Asked by: David Stanton T.D.
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QUESTION
To ask the Minister for Agriculture; Food and the Marine the way he is supporting the horticultural sector to grow vegetables; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
REPLY
I am supporting the horticulture industry, including vegetable production in Ireland through a range of initiatives.
The Scheme of Investment Aid for the Development of the Commercial Horticulture Sector provides grant aid towards capital investments in specialised plant and equipment including renewable energy, as well as technology adoption specific to commercial horticulture production. This Scheme is 100% funded by this Government and a budget of €10 million was secured for the 2024 scheme.
To further support the sector, I recently launched additional support under the 2024 Scheme of Investment Aid for Innovation and Diversification in Horticulture (Feasibility / Desk Studies) and the 2024 Scheme of Investment Aid for Innovation and Diversification in Horticulture (Capital Investments). This support is designed to assist in increasing innovation and diversification among primary producers in the horticulture sector. The total additional budget allocated for these two schemes was €1.35 million.
Vegetable growers are also eligible for supports under the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP). The EU funded Producer Organisation Scheme for Fruit and Vegetables provides an invaluable support to the vegetable sector. Vegetable producers in Producer Organisations can avail of significant financial supports across a range of measures including on farm investments and other eligible measures. Vegetable growers are also eligible to apply for support under the CSP including Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme 3 (TAMS 3), Basic Income Support for Sustainability Scheme (BISS), Agri Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) and the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS).
Earlier this year the Horticulture Crisis Fund (HCF) which was worth €2.38m provided support to horticultural sub sectors most at risk due to a combination of high input prices, low output prices and/or reduced yield. Vegetable growers were eligible for support under the HCF.
In June 2023, together with my colleague, Minister Pippa Hackett, I launched the National Strategy for Horticulture 2023-2027. This stakeholder led strategy sets down a clear vision to grow a more profitable, value-added sector, driven by innovation and sustainability and provides a road map for the sector to achieve this potential. I am committed to seeing this sector which includes vegetables, grow and flourish in the years ahead and my Department is working collaboratively with stakeholders to progress all key strategic actions in the National Strategy for Horticulture.
I continue to work with all sub-sectors of horticulture to explore potential supports.