With high costs and low margins squeezing the farming sector in all areas, the IFA set out some proposals for consideration by the relevant Irish government departments, leading up to the 2025 October Budget. The following excerpt shows their ideas for the Horticulture sector.
Horticulture Crisis Fund
A fund of €2.38 million was available for the Horticulture Crisis Fund, designed to ensure the short-term security of the subsectors most affected by the escalation of critical inputs following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, spanning commercial growers in the glasshouse high-wire crops, field vegetable, mushroom and apple sectors. Input costs have not or decreased to levels before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Earlier this year, Teagasc produced a detailed analysis of input cost inflation across horticulture subsectors. This year’s input is on top of double digit inflationary figures for the previous two years.
IFA Propose:
• A fund must be established for a similarly structured scheme to help alleviate the additional cost of production
. • The scheme should be extended to include soft fruit growers (especially those with heated gas) and all mushroom production, given these producers are also exposed to inflationary input costs as all sectors and those with heated glass even more so.
The Scheme of Investment Aid for the Development of the Commercial Horticulture Sector is critical to the sector’s expansion. It has been successfully utilised in the past to undertake investment and improve efficiency and innovation. Funding under the scheme should be increased in order to help achieve the objective of increased area under horticultural production as part of the National Horticulture Strategy.
IFA Propose:
• Funding for the scheme is increased to €15m (from €10m) to meet the demand for investment, evidenced by the over subscription of the scheme in previous years, particularly last year.
• Compensation is provided for the disposal of ash plants in amenity horticulture.
Spent Mushroom Compost Scheme
The potential for a spent mushroom compost scheme, similar to the straw corporation scheme, may hold significant potential for the agricultural and horticultural sectors. Spent mushroom compost is the byproduct of mushroom cultivation composed of organic materials such as straw. Large volumes of this spent mushroom compost are used as low volume soil conditions. A scheme to incorporate spent mushroom compost into agricultural practices can bring about numerous benefits. Incorporating spent mushroom compost can enhance organic matter and structure, thus improving soil fertility. The scheme could contribute to sustainable agriculture and circular economy practices like the straw corporation measure. Considerations should be made to provide a budget for such a scheme.
IFA Propose:
• A budget of €2M should be provided to initiate a pilot Spent Mushroom Compost scheme.
Peat
Continued funding for research into alternatives to peat must
be committed to.
IFA Propose:
• Just transition fund used to cover costs incurred by
