Farm groups to tackle bio-fuels
An initiative on bio-fuels by the EU Agriculture and Rural Development Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel is due to be published next month.
The Irish Farmers Association (IFA) is to establish a dedicated Bio-Fuels Project Team to advance this issue.
And the Farm Tractor and Machinery Trade Association (FTMTA) have formed a Bio-Fuel Committee to ensure its members are kept up-to-date.
IFA president Padraig Walshe said land use and alternative energy crops could be complementary with proper Government policy.
However, he added: “The longer the Government dithers, the more likely the opportunity will be lost for Irish farmers and our EU obligations on fossil fuel substitution will be met by imports.”
He said Teagasc research is essential to identify the alternative crops that would return a margin to farmers.
Ireland East MEP Liam Aylward, TD, who welcomed the EU bio-fuels initiative, said the final EU sugar reform package was disappointing but all was not lost.
“One of the key results of the reforms must result in a greater production of bio-ethanol, and bio- fuels offer excellent new opportunities for our farmers.”
Meanwhile, the FTMTA said it believes bio-fuel crops can provide a new opportunity for Irish farmers as returns from food crop production diminishes.
Cormac Cavanagh, the Association’s Bio-Fuels Committee chairman, said the farm machinery industry needs to be aware of the opportunities that bio-fuel crops can provide.
“Many of the farm machines currently in use on Irish farms could be effectively used for the cultivation and harvesting of bio-fuel crops,” he said.
“We need to ensure that the viability of these machines is continued through the wider use range that bio-fuel crops provide.”
