Northern Ireland’s dairy sector must be allowed to grow on a sustainable basis, according to a leading industry representative.
This growth must reflect an increase in milk volume while sustaining the high quality of the milk that is produced.
These are the clear views of the Dairy Council for Northern Ireland (DCNI) chief executive, Ian Stevenson.
“If an industry is not allowed to grow, then the alternative is stagnation and decline. The dairy sector plays a critically important role at the very heart of Northern Ireland’s agri-food economy.
“Its continuing development must be planned for in a wholly strategic manner.”
Six months into his new role, Stevenson is highlighting the challenge of sustainability as the issue that will dominate the minds of dairy farmers and processors in Northern Ireland for most of the next decade.
“Northern Ireland’s climate change legislation has been fully enacted. The first five-year climate action plan should be published by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) in the very near future.
“The sector plan for agriculture will copper-fasten emission reduction targets to be achieved by the dairy industry and those other sectors that contribute to production agriculture.
“In tandem with this, we are now seeing fundamental changes being made to the support payments and systems that are available to farming in Northern Ireland.
“The dairy sector will be significantly impacted by these new arrangements.”
Support measures
The transitions in farm support referred to by the Dairy Council representative include the ending of the current Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) and the introduction of a new Farm Sustainability Payment (FSP).
Also included in the new measures are: the Soil Nutrient Health Scheme, a Ruminant Genetics Programme, a Farming for Carbon Scheme and a suite of new innovation measures.
The Dairy Council is actively involved as an officially recognised stakeholder organisation in the Agricultural Policy Stakeholder Group providing input to the codesign of these new measures.
“It is imperative that the needs of milk producers are fully recognised within the outworking of these measures,” Stevenson said.
“A farming with nature programme will also be included within the new farm support package. Again, it’s important for the dairy sector to be actively involved in the development of this scheme.”
Dairy sector
The chief executive drew particular attention to Northern Ireland’s inclusion within the Department of (DEFRA) Dairy Demonstrator Research Call, which launched in November 2023.
This project will provide funding for researchers and their farm business clients to work together to formulate and system-test livestock concentrate diets which reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) and ammonia emissions, and phosphorus (P) losses to the environment on commercial farms in NI.
The dairy demonstrator project will also potentially include system testing of other non-dietary emission mitigations applicable to dairy farms ranging from animal productivity to genetics, manure, fertiliser and soil emissions and energy and fuel related mitigations.
“There will be significant change management elements built into all of the farm development, support and research-focused schemes introduced over the coming years.
“Many of these measures will have a direct impact on Northern Ireland’s dairy farming sector.
“A key role for the Dairy Council will be that of ensuring the delivery of innovative support schemes that reflect the real needs of milk producers in the years ahead,” Stevenson explained.