Dairy Industry Ireland Welcomes €21.6m Boost for Farming for Water and Vital Processing Supports
Dairy Industry Ireland welcomes the Government's Budget announcements today as a vote of confidence in farmers and the industry’s monumental water quality efforts, rural sustainability, and the international competitiveness of our dairy and specialised nutrition sectors.
Conor Mulvihill, Director of Dairy Industry Ireland, said:
“Ireland now has the EU’s biggest collaboration between farmer, industry, and the state on water quality with the ‘Farming for Water’ European Innovation partnership, with almost 6,000 farmers signed up and the program completely oversubscribed. The announcement of an extra €21.6 million for Water Quality and Biodiversity European Innovation Partnerships is a huge vote of confidence in the efforts that are being made. This targeted funding will directly improve water quality on farms and offer critical support to our farmers.”
On dairy and nutrition processing, Mulvihill added:
“Furthermore, the robust suite of measures for advanced food processing ensures our sector remains a global leader in innovation and specialised nutrition. This is overall a balanced budget that rightly recognises the dual necessity of supporting our grassroots farm suppliers in their environmental transition while equipping Ireland's dairy processors to innovate, scale, and compete globally.”
Aspects Advancing Dairy & Nutrition Processing in Ireland
- Regulatory clinical trials can now be used to satisfy the "science test" for R&D Tax Credits, significantly reducing administrative burdens and rewarding R&D work undertaken by functional food and medical nutrition processors.
- Increased R&D subcontracting limits (raised from 15% to 20% with a €200,000 monetary cap) will empower processing companies to collaborate more deeply with institutions like Teagasc and pilot facilities.
- The newly launched ISIF €1 Billion Enterprise Scaling Programme and a standard Capital Gains Tax reduction to 31% will unlock essential capital for ambitious indigenous firms to scale internationally.
- Energy-intensive dairy drying and thermal processing facilities will see immediate baseline cost reductions as natural gas and kerosene carbon tax rates are reduced to €48.50 per tonne and frozen for the lifetime of the government.
- To mitigate wage cost pressures, the employer PRSI threshold has been raised to €600 per week, yielding €650–€700 in annual savings per employee under the threshold.
Dairy Industry Ireland represents primary and secondary dairy manufacturers including the specialised nutrition sector in Ireland. It is affiliated to Ibec.
