‘If I cut my herd by 25 per cent, how do I make that up?’

News that agriculture must reduce its emissions by 25 per cent by 2030 has been greeted with an angry reaction from the local farming community amid uncertainty and fears over what measures will follow to try to achieve this target.

Dunmoe farmer Pat Coogan said it is not sustainable and that if he had to cut his herd by 25 per cent, it would take away any profit he makes.

Pat runs a dairy farm with his son, milking 100 cows and says they are a family farm, not a factory farm.

"We all agree that there is a climate crisis. Having said that, the highest temperature was recorded in 1887 when there was little or no farming. These weather anomalies come round in cycles," he said.

He pointed out that dairy farmers were all encouraged to increase their production and invested heavily to do so and still do.

"I get up at 5.05am every morning and I don't finish until 6pm, 7pm or 8pm. I do 84-90 hours a week. Taking the average wage at €12 to €14 an hour that would be about €1,200 a week. I don't have that out of it.

"This year of all years we are got by oil, fertilizer, meal and electricity all going up and they want to cut 25 per cent in the midst of a pandemic.

"If I cut my herd by 25 per cent, how do I make that up,?" he asked.

Pat feels other sectors need to play a role too such as aviation and feels farmers are being stigmatised.

"I was putting my cows down the field and four planes circled overhead. One flight produces more emissions that I would in my whole lifetime milking cows and there is not a word about aviation.

"The biggest herd of cows in the world is in India, 40 million cows. China, Russia, America and India are talking about emissions but not doing anything and they are the most industrialised countries.

"We are on an island, what we are putting out is small. I spent €15,000 putting up 20 solar panels to reduce my carbon footprint, there was no grant or thank you for that. And I'm looking at putting up a small windmill. We bought a low band emissions vacuum tanker for slurry so its injected into the ground that cost €40,000. We are playing our part."

Pat said people forget that the country depends on farmers to put food on the table.

"People forget everyone depends on us three times a day for breakfast dinner and tea and everybody and the government wants cheap food but how can we produce cheap food when all our inputs are through the roof and now we are being hit over the head with 25 per cent on top of that. It is not sustainable."

Pat feels the changes are too drastic and that more time is needed.

"This should be done slowly with thoughts for those out there who will succumb to it. The solution is draconian, it should be done over a period of time, not over a weekend."

Farmers are worried about how these targets can be achieved and what measures will be introduced to meet them and says there is a lot of uncertainty.

"The worst thing you can have is uncertainty, the markets, nobody likes uncertainty and that's where we are now. We are in uncharted waters, where will all this start and where will they finish with all the rules," said Pat.

"Until all the world wakes up and realises it is a global problem with a global solution, not just an Irish solution or a European solution, it has to be a sustainable co-operative solution, how else can you do it?"