2026-05-14

83. Deputy Robert O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will consider introducing a targeted support package to assist farmers with escalating gas and energy costs (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35916/26]

Supports have been provided to farmers in the main budget already. I have addressed this issue before but want to highlight again that the commercial growers have largely been left out of this. Unlike farmers who benefit for supports for green diesel, growers are facing significant increases in gas and energy prices, particularly those in horticulture sector. Given the rising cost pressures on growers and the vital role they play in our food supply chain, will the Minister consider introducing a targeted support package to assist them with escalating gas and energy prices?

I thank the Deputy for asking this question. I reassure him that specialist horticulture has not been forgotten. The Minister of State, Deputy Dooley, and I have mentioned it when we talked about fuel support and securing the €100 million package. We talked about farmers, farm contractors, fishers, forestry and specialist horticulture. That will form a part of this support package. It is different because the producers do not use marked gas oil as the Deputy outlined in his question. After what has been a tumultuous couple of months, I reflect on the fact that this is the only question on the fuel support schemes during the hour and a half we have this morning, which I will take as an indication that the interventions we have made have been significant and impactful. The Irish horticulture industry is an important economic sector in Ireland, with a farm-gate value of over €600 million. It contains a diverse range of sectors, including mushrooms, potatoes, field vegetables, protected fruit, protected vegetables, outdoor fruit and amenity crops. I fully recognise the impact of the Middle East crisis on the sector and, in particular, certain subsectors within it. Indeed, the announcement on 12 of April of a fuel support scheme made specific reference to the horticulture sector, as I have outlined. This fuel support scheme will provide supports equivalent to 20 cent per litre to farmers and contractors to offset increased costs in marked gas oil. Payments will be made through a single application process with funding allocated based on green diesel usage in 2025. The main fuel used by growers of field vegetables, field salad crops, field-grown fruit and top fruit is marked gas oil, or green diesel, and these growers are eligible to apply. Unlike other horticulture subsectors, the protected crop sector is dependent on natural gas and liquified petroleum gas, LPG, the cost of which has also increased significantly since March. Recognising this, my Department has engaged with relevant stakeholders to develop supports for this specialist sector within horticulture, within the framework of the Middle East crisis state aid framework and within the total budget of €100 million that I secured for agriculture and fisheries supports in April.

As the Minister knows, commercial growers across the country are under enormous and sustained pressure. I am specifically talking about a very small subset of those growers who use gas to heat their greenhouses in order to grow certain vegetables. The soaring energy bills, higher fertiliser prices and transport costs they are facing due to the Middle East crisis are pushing them to the brink. We are not talking here about abstract figures on a spreadsheet. These are family-run businesses that employ local people, produce Irish food and sustain our food security. Even as energy costs continue to spiral, we need supports that reflect the reality on the ground. Growers simply cannot continue if they are forced to operate on a month-to-month survival basis, constantly exposed to cash-flow pressures and squeezed further by supermarket pricing dynamics. It is a small sector, but it is certainly an important sector in north County Dublin. It is specifically those using gas to power their glasshouses. I see an ethical dilemma for some people, but there are not many growers left. We would like to keep them.

I agree with the Deputy that it is a very important sector. It is more important than just for the Deputy's constituency in north County Dublin. It is really important to the overall ecosystem of how our food is produced. It is a sector that is feeling real pressure, and I recognise that. It is a sector that has become quite marginalised and narrowed down and pressure from very large retailers has made it a very difficult space for people in the horticulture sector to be in. I and my Department are absolutely determined to support it, protect it and make sure it is thriving and viable into the future. In the context of the changes I made around the Agri-Food Regulator and so forth, what was in my mind throughout all that time was that horticulturists are the most vulnerable in the sector. The extra powers and increased funding I was able to give the Agri-Food Regulator last year were to support those sectors that are the most vulnerable and the likes of that. I will also be meeting with representatives of the sector later this month to go through what is possible in terms of that element of the fuel support scheme, to support them in light of the small few who are dependent on natural gas and LPG.

I appreciate that response. To recap, Irish growers are expected to compete with those in other countries in which gas costs are significantly lower. That creates an uneven playing field, as the Minister knows. Our growers have been asked to meet the highest environmental, quality and labour yet they are not always receiving the supports they might need. If this trajectory continues we will see a loss of more grower's jobs and family-run businesses. Officially, we have 73 growers left in the country. If you speak to some of the growers, it is questionable as to whether the figure of 73 is accurate. Once those growers are gone, they are gone. I appreciate what the Minister has told me already and I believe what we need is a targeted intervention and clear financial package, and policies that genuinely support and sustain Irish horticulture.

Because of the importance of the horticulture sector, and specialist horticulture in particular, my Department already provides significant support measures to the Irish horticulture industry through a range of initiatives. We provided €15.7 million in supports to the sector in 2025, excluding supports under basic income support for sustainability, BISS, targeted agricultural modernisation scheme, TAMs, and organics. In addition, the protected crop sector can benefit from carbon tax relief for natural gas and LPG usage. These measures recognise the continued Government support for the development of this important sector. I am committed to seeing this sector grow and flourish in the years ahead for the reasons outlined. I look forward to meeting the representatives later this month on those specific supports. It is not always just about money; it is about the structural support as well and that is why the extra powers we gave to the Agri-Food Regulator were very much with the likes of this vulnerable sector in mind. That we protect that position of the primary producer in that relationship between the producer, the processor and the retailer.