Farming emissions remain largely unchanged since 1990s, Agricultural Science Association head says

Achieving a 25 per cent reduction in agricultural greenhouse gas emissions will prove “very challenging” but debate on the subject must remain grounded in facts, the head of Ireland’s Agricultural Science Association (ASA) has said.

Dr George Ramsbottom said despite the tenor of recent public discourse, emissions have remained relatively unchanged since the 1990s and he saw no signs of any increase in the dairy herd.

“You’d imagine from what’s being reported that there was kind of an explosion in stock numbers and an explosion in emissions going on but the reality is probably not quite as dramatic as that,” he said, speaking ahead of the forthcoming Agricultural Science Association conference next month.

“I would just like people to stick to the facts around where we are. The perception is that it’s kind of an explosion going on in agriculture in terms of emissions and in terms of scale. And the reality is it hasn’t changed that much really.”

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Last month, the Government set a 25 per cent emissions reduction target for agriculture by 2030, a compromise figure resulting from protracted coalition negotiations. The Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) branded it “a potentially devastating blow for Irish farming and the rural economy” while climate scientists said it would ultimately see the State falling short of its commitment to cut emissions by 51 per cent.

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Dr Ramsbottom, a dairy expert at Teagasc and a farmer, said the debate about what the sector could do in the coming years must be grounded in facts.

Citing data from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), he said agriculture was responsible for 37.5 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions in 2021, but the level of CO2 equivalent produced by the sector that year was only slightly above 1998 levels.

And, leaning on Central Statistics Office data, he said Ireland had 1.505 million dairy cows in 2021 but 1.523 million in 1984.

The introduction of milk quotas in 1984 brought a steep decline in numbers, dipping to approximately one million in the early 2000s, before growing again following the removal of the quotas in 2015, he said.

The ASA, which has 1,650 members, is the professional body for agricultural, horticultural, forestry, environmental and food science.

Its conference next month will address many of the issues relevant to sustainable farming, including the role played by science.

Keen to push the technological solutions to greenhouse gas production, Dr Ramsbottom would not be drawn on how they might affect any need for a potential decrease in herd size.

According to the ASA, many solutions are “ready to go”, including specialised fertilisers, the use of which alone could reduce emissions in the sector by approximately 8 per cent, or one-third of the overall target.

Dr Ramsbottom said establishing white clover in grass swards and the development of feed additives would also further reduce emissions.