From Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
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Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue T.D., and Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Senator Pippa Hackett, today announced two further Calls for European Innovation Partnership (EIPs) across the themes of ‘Promoting Generational Renewal on Irish Farms’ and ‘Fostering the Use of Digital Technologies on Irish Farms’.
Minister Hackett said:
“Following on from previous EIP Calls, I am delighted to announce the next round of these calls across the themes of Generational Renewal and Use of Digital Technologies on Irish farms.
“EIPs are great way to bring farmers and other stakeholders together to develop new and innovative ways to tackle the many existing and emerging challenges faced by the agriculture sector, and for local groups and communities to identify local solutions to local challenges."
Commenting on the launch of the call, Minister McConalogue, said:
“The new round of EIPs under Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan 2023 – 2027 will build on the success of the previous 57 projects under the RDP, outputs from which have already been integrated into current CAP Strategic Plan through the Agri-Climate Rural Environmental Scheme (ACRES). I look forward to seeing the innovation, advancements and policy guiding initiatives that will be achieved through this latest call which will cover the areas of Generational Renewal and the greater use of Digital Technologies in farming in Ireland.”
The Ministers are inviting Operational Groups to submit Expressions of Interest across the two themes and is encouraging participants to be innovative with their proposals.
Concluding, Minister Hackett said:
"The strength of the EIP model is that it adopts a bottom-up approach, with the involvement of farmers key to its success. I look forward to announcing further EIP calls in the near future to address environmental sustainability - in particular the importance of soil health to resilient farm systems, as well as the challenges that farming is facing in adapting to climate change, especially in the area of flood mitigation.”
ENDS
The EIP initiative is co-funded by the European Commission and the Irish Government under the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP). The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine will fund payments to farmers as well as the Operational Groups’ administrative costs.
The EIP initiative involves a range of stakeholders (farmers, advisors, researchers, NGOs) coming together in what are termed ‘Operational Groups’ to trial innovative solutions that the Groups themselves have developed.
There are currently two flagship EIP projects under the CSP, namely, the Water EIP and the Breeding Waders EIP.
These next two calls - Call 4 and Call 5 - will focus on Generational Renewal and Digital Technologies, respectively. Each of the selected projects will be funded for a period of between three and five years, with a maximum budget allocation of €650,000 per project.
Further information on the European Innovation Partnership initiative and the guidelines for these calls for proposals can be accessed on the Department’s website, at gov.ie - European Innovation Partnership Scheme
The EU’s common agricultural policy (CAP) is a partnership between society and agriculture that ensures a stable supply of food, safeguards farmers’ income, protects the environment and keeps rural areas vibrant. EU countries implement the CAP at national level with a tailored CAP Strategic Plan for the period 2023-2027.
The closing date for this Expressions of Interest Call is 5pm on Monday, 4 November 2024.