Farm succession win for Macra will benefit young Kilkenny farmers

Macra National President Elaine Houlihan and Agriculture Affairs Chair Liam Hanrahan attended the Taoiseach’s roundtable meeting with farm organisations to discuss policy priorities from the farming organisations.

Macra has long proposed an on-farm succession scheme that supports the older generation of farmers to step back while also supporting the younger generation in their desire to become active farmers.

“We are pleased that the Taoiseach has given commitment to review our farm succession scheme, a scheme which was supported by other farm organisations yesterday, we are hopeful that this will be included in the upcoming budget. Farm succession is vitally important to secure a future for young farmers throughout , said Macra National President Elaine Houlihan.

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Macra’s proposed farm succession scheme will financially reward the landowner who intends on stepping back from farming whilst also incentivising the new entrant young farmer to implement all applicable environmental measures to reduce the carbon footprint of the farm. In so doing they will increase the farm’s economic, social and environmental sustainability. This will provide major opportunities for land mobility, generation renewal and the prosperity of rural Ireland while enhancing the environmental credentials of our grass-based system of food production.”

Meanwhile, the Macra President said reports of an internal Government document proposing the culling of 200,000 dairy cows over a three-year timeframe to meet climate targets, was ‘a complete knee jerk report that is very damaging for farming, rural communities and Ireland Inc. and flies in the face of promoting generational renewal in agriculture.’

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She said “the solution to deliver sustainable results on climate targets for agriculture is emerging from our farmers and food producers based on the best practice as derived from experience, research and science backed by our world class agricultural scientists working on new solutions, that will deliver emissions reduction for the sector and not by unstainable short-termism strategies like culling as suggested in the report.”