Download The Full Policy HERE

The Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) have today published its Forestry Policy. The policy is, they maintain a blueprint for how Ireland can overcome the current impasse in afforestation while achieving the three aims of increased carbon sequestration, greater biodiversity and improved water quality.

In discussing this INHFA Council Representative for Leitrim/West Cavan Patsy Daly stated “how this policy benefits the environment, farmers and our rural communities and is in stark contrast to the current Government policy on afforestation.”

When assessing current Government policy Daly was scathing on how this policy continues to incentivise investment companies in paying artificially inflated prices for agricultural land and then planting it with Sitka Spruce trees. Farmers are, he added, “unable to compete with these inflated prices, which has left many young farmers unable to get established and restricted existing farmers from expanding.”

With regard to the foreign investment companies, the INHFA representative questioned why we persist with a policy that supports them through Irish taxpayer’s money, to plant Sitka Spruce plantations, which kills biodiversity, pollutes our waterways while providing little or no carbon sequestration. “None of this makes sense and must be changed” he added.

In outlining the INHFA forestry policy Daly maintained how “we are proposing to turn all of this around, by incentivising farmers to plant a portion of their farms with native woodlands and commercial broadleaf trees.”

“Native woodlands and commercial broadleaves sequester carbon, they increase biodiversity and improve air and water quality. In addition to this, they provide quality of life benefits for local people as well as opportunities for woodland tourism” he stated.

Through this, we will, continued Daly, “see a policy shift from the vicious circle of anti-community, anti-environment and anti-farmer to a virtuous circle of forestry delivering social, economic and environmental benefits to the communities where they are situated.”

The Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) have written to Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue seeking the establishment of a sheep taskforce to address the ongoing fall in lamb prices and to develop a medium to long-term plan for the sheep sector.

In seeking the establishment of the Taskforce, INHFA President Vincent Roddy stressed the need for parties across the sector to work together in developing a plan that can deliver for farmers who are the critical element of the industry.
Roddy stated, "Any stakeholder group needs to be driven by the Department of Agriculture and include farmer representation through the relevant farming bodies, involvement from processors and involvement from other bodies such as Bord Bia, Teagasc, ACA and ICOS.”

While recognising that the immediate urgency relates to the current price of lamb any such Task Force should, he continued “cover additional factors relating to the sheep sector such as dog control, price of wool and the increasing problem of sheep theft.”

The Irish Natura & Hill Farmers Association have again warned of the dangers to the suckler sector by proposals from the Food Vision Climate Action Plan which the Association walked away from last November. “Of immediate concern for the suckler sector is the proposal to reduce the age of slaughter to under 24 months” , said INHFA President Vincent Roddy.

This proposal is, continued Roddy “an immediate threat to suckler farmers with larger carcass breeds that cannot be finished at the ages proposed but will also impact other areas of the beef industry by creating a glut of cattle for slaughter each Spring.”

These are, he added “issues of concern we raised last November and are issues that have also been raised by many others since. Unfortunately, the Minister seems determined to persist with this proposal irrespective of these concerns which clearly undermines a stated objective of his - that being to protect the suckler sector.”

In assessing the proposal and specifically the reasoning behind it the INHFA President was adamant that slaughtering younger cattle with much lighter carcasses will do nothing to reduce emissions and could in fact see emissions increase. When assessing this we must, he added “assess the efficiency of the animal in producing a kilo of beef rather than the age of the animal which is currently proposed.”

The Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association have hit back at proposals by Coillte to work in partnership with a UK asset management company as they aim to plant a further 100,000ha of new forestry.

INHFA Council Representative for Leitrim/West Cavan Patsy Daly outlined how these proposals are a major threat to our rural communities and must not go ahead.

In discussing this Daly stated “how many communities are dealing with the scourge of a failed forestry policy that has prioritised the interests of investment funds and multinationals ahead of local farmers and the rural economy.”
This has, he added “seen local farmers unable to compete for farmland in their area as forestry premium and tax exemptions has given forestry investors a critical advantage in the purchase of land.”

In assessing the proposals by Coillte to partner with both the UK asset management company Gresham House and Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), it will he stated “provide Coillte, through these funds, access to State Support through the Forestry establishment grant and the annual forestry premium, thereby creating a land management and acquisition monster that no farmer can compete against.”

As the Minister and Government prepare to announce details on how agriculture will meet the 25% reduction in Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions the Irish Natura & Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) are adamant that our suckler sector must not be undermined.

Speaking on this for the first time since the association were mandated by their members to withdraw support for the Food Vision Beef and Sheep Group, National President Vincent Roddy stated how “our suckler sector is not the problem when it comes to GHG emissions and pointed to the fact that the sector has seen a reduction of 18% over the last ten years,”

“In our engagement In the Food Vision Group we outlined on a number of occasions our opposition to specific proposals most notably proposals around a voluntary reduction/exit scheme and proposals to reduce the age of first calving and slaughter age to 24 months” , said Roddy.

As previously outlined all of these proposals he added “will undermine the sector by imposing unrealistic targets and creating reputational damage to the marketing of naturally reared suckler beef both in Europe and beyond.”