Glanbia announces €18m fund to pay farmers to go green

The three-year programme aims to help the firm's 5,000 milk suppliers enhance the environmental and economic sustainability of their family farms.

Glanbia Ireland has announced plans to launch an €18m annual Sustainability Action Payment for its farm suppliers.

The three-year programme aims to help the firm’s 5,000 milk suppliers to enhance the environmental and economic sustainability of their family farms.

The programme will focus on reducing the carbon footprint of farms, as well as enhancing water quality and biodiversity, and improving air quality and soil health.

Dairy suppliers will receive an extra 0.5c per litre (including Vat) equating to almost €3,000 for the average supplier.

The Sustainability Action Payment will be made to all suppliers that deliver any seven sustainability actions from a total of 16 options with the actions to be verified by a combination of Glanbia Ireland records and the Bord Bia Sustainable Dairy Assurance Scheme.

For 2022, the first year of the programme, all suppliers will receive the payment in full. To qualify for the 2023 payment suppliers need to begin implementing their on-farm sustainability actions in 2022.

The measures supported are closely aligned with the climate action measures identified in Teagasc’s emissions reduction Marginal Abatement Cost Curve (MACC) climate plan, and include:

• Reducing carbon emissions by utilising multi-species swards and clover; measuring grass growth, improving the herd Economic Breeding Index (EBI) to deliver lower GHG emissions; milk recording and opting for FarmGen renewable energy generation;
• Improving air quality through the use of Low Emissions Slurry Spreading (LESS) equipment and the use of protected urea;
• Supporting biodiversity by planting additional native trees and increasing hedgerows;
• Protecting soil health and water quality through nutrient management planning; delivering ASSAP water quality improvement plans and water protection measures;
• Supporting animal health and welfare by herd disease screening; improving udder health and participating in the innovative Twenty20 Beef Club.

Glanbia Co-op chairman John Murphy said: “We all have a role to play in climate action, water and biodiversity protection and air quality enhancement. It is important that our family farms are assisted as they continue to enhance the environmental and economic sustainability of their farms.

“This initiative is designed to reward suppliers for adopting a series of measures identified as key to delivering on our comprehensive sustainability strategy, Living Proof, with a strong framework of measures for farmers to implement with verifiable proof-points.”