The Minister for Agriculture, Food, and the Marine, Michael Creed, has announced the roll-out of a new Agricultural Sustainability Support & Advisory Programme (ASSAP) scheme.
The new scheme, which is funded jointly by the Government, Glanbia, and other dairy processors, is a collaboration between the Government and the industry to deliver 30 new ‘Agricultural Sustainability Advisors’ to work with farmers across the country.
Glanbia has appointed Emma O’Grady as the dedicated ASSAP advisor for Glanbia Ireland.
Sustainability Advisors
The aim of the scheme is to support best farming practices while minimising its impact on water supply. The practical advice will be designed to “break the pathway” and prevent nutrients from entering the water.
The advisors will oversee the implementation of the programme which is aimed at encouraging sustainable farming while meeting stringent water quality requirements on over 5,000 farms nationwide
At the end of a farm visit, the advisor and farmer will agree on where the farmer should best focus improvements or actions, if any are required, on the farm.
The new scheme comes in response to the River Basin Management Plan for Ireland 2018-2021.
The plan identified that agriculture is a significant pressure in over 50% of waters at risk of not meeting their ecological target of ‘good’ status by 2027
© 2018 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Aidan O’Sullivan. Click subscribe to sign up for the Checkout print edition.
