Latest news with #EuropeanInnovationPartnership
Agriland
04-08-2025
- Business
- Agriland
Base Ireland Hopes Eip Project Will Bring Re Gen Ag to the Masses
Over €1.4 million in funding for a new European Innovation Partnership (EIP) project aimed at restoring soil health and enhancing biodiversity through regenerative agriculture practices has been granted to BASE Ireland. The project lead for the EIP, Rob Coleman spoke to Agriland about at BASE Ireland's 'Soil Dependence' in Maynooth on Friday (July 4). BASE Ireland is the Irish branch of an international community of farmers and agriculture professionals focused on implementing and promoting regenerative agriculture. According to Coleman: 'A big part of this EIP is that it needs to stand up to scrutiny, if there's no money in this, don't waste your time. 'We live in the real world, and the real world is expensive, we can't expect farmers to look at these measures without protecting their incomes. 'So I hope that we will be able to demonstrate that this is not just environmentally positive but farmer-positive too." Coleman hopes the EIP will bring "re-gen ag to the masses". He said: 'In BASE Ireland, we've been going for 10 or 12 years, and there's a lot of knowledge built up there, and we're just trying to give it all away. 'If we're successful in our EIP, we should be able to convey that information, and we should be able to inspire people as much as give information." Coleman also highlighted the issue of generation renewal in farming in Ireland, and the cultural difficulty young people in particular face when looking to adopt new agricultural practices. He said: 'We're trying to stop the alienation surrounding reg-gen ag. 'We do have a succession problem in farming, and if we can keep the young people interested, there's definitely a rising environmental conscience in young people, and if we can tap into that and make it (farming) more attractive." Mervyn Auchmuty, who is the secretary of BASE Ireland also spoke to Agriland about some of the regenerative practices he has been using on his farm since joining the organisation in 2018. He said: "We're direct drilling all our crops; we're trying to reduce our fungicides; we haven't used aphicides for about four or five years. "I don't see us reducing our herbicides yet, but we have reduced our nitrogen from about 170kg/N/ha, depending on the crop, down to 108kg/N/ha last year." Auchmuty spoke of how the EIP can tie in with his efforts to cut nitrogen usage on his farm. "To reduce our nitrogen we've started using melted urea as a foliar feed, we're also using seaweed and trace elements along with that, at the same time," he said. "By doing that you're trying to get a healthier plant, while also reducing your fungicides. "So all these things that I'm doing, I'd like to put figures on them as part of the EIP."
Agriland
04-08-2025
- General
- Agriland
Watch: Farming 'the Rocks' in south Co. Roscommon
A new European Innovation Partnership (EIP) called "Regenerating the Rocks", based in south Roscommon, is set to launch in the coming months. The project has been allocated €1.6 million, with the aim of connecting old and new farming technologies to conserve the unique species-rich karst grassland of south Co. Roscommon. It was among 11 new EIP projects on the theme of innovation and environmental sustainability to secure funding from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and the EU earlier this year. The EIP initiative is co-funded by the European Commission and the Irish government under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Strategic Plan 2023-2027. This results-based programme is a locally led project, involving farmers trialling actions on farms to ensure practical outcomes and learnings to better preserve this rare landscape. Agriland spoke to members of the Karst Farming Network to see what the project will involve and how they plan to protect the karst grassland. Project lead, Eoghan Finneran said: "The Karst Farming Network EIP was set up with the purpose of bringing together a group of farmers within the local community to create actions to preserve these rare grasslands. "It's a four-year project, and we'll be starting from September 2025, enrolling 50 farmers from the south Roscommon area, and they will be farming up to 5,000ac. "Really what we're looking to do is create a structure where farmers can generate an income from their cattle and sheep grazing this grassland, and at the same time be more positive in their management of them." Liam Kildea, a farmer who has grown up farming this land, described the history of the landscape and what it means to him to work on this unique grassland. He said: "From a child I used to come over here herding with my father, and I was always in awe of the landscape, because it never looked like anything else we had ever came across. "We have a breeole wood here which is an ancient woodland; we have doleens, which are sink holes and that's where our hazel grows. "The hazel would have been used here to build houses, so this area would have been very precious back in the day." A major problem in maintaining this grassland is the encroachment of scrub. Linda Gilsenan, an ecologist working on the project explained how they plan to combat this problem through area-based actions. She said: "One of the problems in maintaining this species-rich grassland is scrub, and if the land isn't grazed by cattle or sheep then scrub starts to encroach, and then we lose the species-rich grassland. "So, what we're looking at is using collars on grazing animals to target areas especially where there's bracken or scrub, clearing some paths, and then using remote technology to monitor how that action is working." The project will run in collaboration with Senus, a Roscommon-based environmental data management company. Some of the technologies Senus will employ to monitor these area-based actions will be remote sensing and drone mapping, as well as Senus Terrain, which will facilitate ecological survey data input and geotag photographing. A focal point for this EIP is community outreach and bringing local farmers and community members together to raise awareness about this rare karst landscape. One of the ways the project hopes to do this is through artwork. Nicola Bowes, the project's community and outreach manager said: "We've had great practice over the last couple of years. "So, we're probably going to go on the same realm, having workshops, art exhibitions, community events - we've even been talking about having a yearly festival." Bowes hopes these events will highlight and continue as awareness of this "beautiful, magical karst landscape" grows.
Agriland
13-06-2025
- Business
- Agriland
Co. Louth free-range farm walk to focus on ‘sustainability'
A farm walk is due to take place next week at the family-owned free-range Belview egg farm in Co. Louth, with the aim of promoting sustainability in the sector. Dermot Herlihy, who has a strong focus on environmental responsibility within poultry on his enterprise, will host the farm walk on Wednesday, June 18 at 11:00a.m. The Teagasc-organised walk will take place in Carrickbaggot, Co. Louth, and all are welcome to attend. The company – which was established in 1978 by Dermot and his wife Nicola – has grown over the last 40 years from 5,000 hens to a brood of 288,000 hens today. The event will primarily discuss poultry manure in tillage, European Innovation Partnership (EIP) farming for water quality, as well as solar panels and energy savings. Poultry manure in tillage Broiler litter is a mixture of chicken manure and bedding material, and is a fertiliser often used for tillage crops in Ireland. It can be a very cost-effective way of building soil fertility in comparison to artificial fertilisers, particularly on soils low in phosphorus (P). Chicken manure has a high dry matter content, which helps to build soil organic carbon, improve the soils water-holding capacity, and can also improve the soil biological activity. Broiler litter is rich in essential nutrients, including P, nitrogen (N), potassium (K), and trace minerals. European Innovation Partnership (EIP) The Farming for Water European Innovation Partnership (EIP), will provide €50 million to approximately 15,000 farmers up to the end of 2027 in a bid to improve water quality, according to Teagasc. There are over 40 measures to choose from, including: completing a rainwater management plan; a farmer training course; and a Nutrient Management Plan. It also provides funding for items such as solar pumps, stream fencing, and hedge and tree planting. This grant aid is targeted to specific priority areas for action. Solar panels and energy savings For many farmers, solar power is becoming a prominent option when dealing with current environments. Research suggests solar panels can cut energy costs, support sustainability, and give electrical independence to farmers. Depending on battery specification, a farmer can displace the majority of his electricity, and may even be approved to be eligible to return to the grid. If eligible, the Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) provides a 40% grant on a solar PV investment, while young qualified farmers can get up to 60% in grant aid.
Agriland
01-06-2025
- Business
- Agriland
Share Farming EIP set to launch in coming months
A new European Innovation Partnership (EIP) project focused on share farming as an effective generational renewal option is set to launch in the coming months. Over €300,000 has been allocated to the project developed by The Land Mobility Service, in conjunction with Teagasc, Succession Ireland, Macra, and Lakeland Dairies. It was among three new EIP projects on the theme of generational renewal to secure funding from the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine (DAFM) and the EU earlier this year. Share Farming EIP The Share Farming EIP, which will run in the Lakeland Dairies catchment area, leverages the concept of share farming as an effective mechanism to bridge the gap between retiring landowners and aspiring young farmers. It aims to create opportunities while availing of existing environmentally compliant infrastructure, reduced financial outlay, relationship building, and asset and income security to deliver sustainable farm arrangements. Access to land has long been highlighted as a barrier to generational renewal. Land leasing and purchase favours established farmers and people with significant financial resources, including non-farmers. Patrick Brady, land mobility coordinator in Lakeland Dairies catchment area, told Agriland that it is hoped the new project will be rolled out over the coming months. 'It's a three-year project so we'll be looking for young trained farmers and landowners looking to retire or step back in order to participate in that project. We're starting hopefully from July onwards for three years,' he said. Agreement Share Farming is where two or more people come together to farm the same piece of ground. Both the landowner and share farmer will manage the farm jointly. The share farmer is responsible for farm operations and day-to-day management, with the landowner typically providing the land and infrastructure. The core objectives of the Share Farming EIP include: Establishing share farming agreements, involving young trained farmers and landowners; Providing comprehensive support to participants, covering farm and financial planning, communication, and sustainability practices; Demonstrating the benefits and scalability of share farming as a model for generational renewal. By the end of the project, participating young farmers will be operating as share farmers with the necessary skills and experience to operate independently. Meanwhile, retiring landowners will transition from active farming with confidence for the future of their land, according to the project team. There are a number of possible advantages of share farming, including: The landowner continues to be a farmer; The young person becomes a farmer as part of a good farm business with significantly less finance than would be the case with a lease or purchase; Share Farming requires a lower level of finance, equity and capital investment than land purchase or leasing. Also, existing infrastructure is fully utilised. This enables good farm care and performance; Both parties are separate from a tax and business perspective. The Share Farming EIP is aiming to address systemic challenges in Irish agriculture by introducing an innovative approach to land access and management. 'At its core, share farming involves two parties—a landowner and a young farmer—collaborating on farm operations while sharing responsibilities, risks, and rewards. 'This arrangement allows both parties to benefit, landowners can step back from daily operations while retaining income and oversight, and young farmers gain access to land and develop their farm business,' the project team said.
Agriland
01-06-2025
- Science
- Agriland
Loop Head at forefront of agricultural sustainability research
Local community development group, Loop Head Together CLG, which is based in the Loop Head peninsula, Co. Clare, was recently awarded €1.75 million to conduct a soil carbon enhancement project aimed at determining the feasibility of restoring soil health in coastal farming regions of Ireland. The funding forms part of an overall investment of €17.8 m in eleven projects under the European Innovation Partnership (EIP), which forms part of the Common Agricultural Policy strategic plan. The announcement coincides with the current roll-out of Loop Head's involvement in Ireland mid-west's Living Lab, a European-funded project called Soilcrates. Loop Head The new project firmly places Loop Head at the forefront of this research around sustainability in agriculture, according to Margaret Cotter, chairperson of Loop Head Together CLG. The group – in collaboration with Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) through research fellow Dr Lena Madden, and assisted by consultants Laura Foley MSc and Michelle Cooney – submitted an EIP proposal to roll out a research project on the Loop Head peninsula, The project is dedicated to soil carbon enhancement, reducing nutrient run-offs and the need for chemical fertilisers, and exploring the potential for circular bio-economy solutions in agriculture. The project is co-funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and the EU. DAFM cited not only its support of the project as an extension of the department's overall mission to improve soil health, but also pointed out that the project is highly relevant and aligns with the department's priorities around promoting the circular and bio economy. According to Loop Head Together CLG, the most important part of this project is that it will be carried out in conjunction with farmers on the ground with the aim of improving not just the soil but also the long-term viability and sustainability of farming and agriculture generally, With soil management and soil health literally being the foundation of environmental sustainability, these learnings have the potential to have very positive impacts on both the environment and agriculture across the country, the CLG stated. With the Loop Head peninsula also already being the pilot decarbonising zone for Co. Clare, Loop Head Together CLG expressed its gratitude for the support of Clare County Council – in particular, Morgan Lahiffe and the wider climate action team – when it came to putting together this proposal for Loop Head. Dr. Lena Madden, research fellow at TUS. Image source: Longford County Council. The proposal will also see support from University College Dublin, Munster Technological University, Premier Green, Kracken Seeds, EIT Climate, Arigna Fuels, the ICOS, and agricultural consultants Damien Coyne Ltd. Minister of State at the DAFM, Timmy Dooley, cited the project as a 'way of exploring and demonstrating best practice across the country in terms of sustainable farming'. He described the economic impact of developing better systems for farmers in a way that does not damage the long-term viability of the farm or the soil. 'Research projects like these puts the farming community at the forefront of such findings, meaning that farming is protected going forward,' Minister Dooley said. Fine Gael Deputy, Joe Cooney commended the community on the Loop Head peninsula. 'I'm delighted to see the Loop Head Together organisation getting acknowledged at department level in this way, for the innovative and strategic approach it has taken in tackling some of the challenges that face coastal farming communities. 'I look forward to engaging with them as they progress the project,' Deputy Cooney said. This project, which is rolling out under the working title of SCEENE (Soil Carbon Enhancement for Excess Nutrient Elimination) is still pending final clarifications and signing of contracts, but it is hoped to move towards implementation in the coming months. Local community Margaret Cotter, chairperson of Loop Head Together CLG, said that the goal with the project as a group 'is to support our local farming community in finding solutions to the challenges presented by climate change'. 'The two principal economic drivers in Loop Head are tourism and agriculture and we are acutely aware as a community of the need to support both to ensure the sustainability of our locality into the future.' Cotter pointed out that the project would not have been possible without Loop Head Together's ongoing collaboration with TUS and in particular Dr. Lena Madden. 'Lena has brought with her the extensive expertise of her colleagues and friends who form the operational group for the project. We are also very grateful to the Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine for selecting us in this competitive process.' Loop Head Together CLG expressed thanks to its local community on Loop Head for supporting their efforts to work together towards protecting farms and the environment, and in promoting the potential for circular bioeconomy solutions that will help keep rural communities thriving into the future.
