‘More carrot, less stick is needed on renewables’
A “CARROT rather than stick” approach would solve the carbon emissions problem in agriculture within 15 years, argues James Donoghue of the Longways Orchard farm in Co Tipperary.
“I am not an educated man in these matters but I know that farmers would be encouraged to install solar, wind and forestry projects if a proper carbon credit plan was in place,” says James.
“At the moment it is the solar and wind turbine companies who are benefiting from the Government’s investment in renewables.”
Carbon taxes on diesel, fertilisers and electricity will increase costs to farmers, and there needs to be a mechanism to offset these taxes for farmers, he adds.
James, comes from a nonagricultural background, and took the scenic route to his 45-acre farm after completing his agricultural studies in Rockwell College in 1981 under the old ACOT programme.
On graduation, he went on the farm apprentice scheme, then moved to Saudi Arabia to work on a dairy farm which was milking 1,200 cows on a three-times-a-day rota.
“I call it my ‘ missing in action’ years, but it was a great experience. To give you an idea of the scale of the enterprise, the milk lorries came from Jeddah to the farm in Tabuk every day — a distance equivalent to driving from Dublin to Paris,” he recalls.
After four years in Saudi he came back to Ireland and took up a position as manager of the then Clonag co-op in Cahir.
In the 1990s he decided to branch out on his own and plant orchards after securing a contract with Bulmers for 20 acres of apples.
His venture in craft cider began 10 years ago when, just before the economic crash, there were fears that Bulmers might relocate to Britain.
The craft cider venture has been successful, but James stresses that the bulk of his income still comes from his Bulmers contract.
The Longways cider brand is now a Bord Bia-listed Origin Green product.
The craft sector has a 3pc share of the cider market and is projected to pass 8pc in the next five years. James is ready for the challenge, having won Gold Medals at the Blas na hEireann awards for his cider, among other awards
And his honeybees have produced a honey rich enough to win a silver medal at the London Honey show.
Like most artisan food producers, he is unstinting in his praise of the Food Academy run by SuperValu.
The support provided helped him perfect his cider and honey products while steering him through the busi-
FARMERS WOULD INSTALL SOLAR AND WIND PROJECTS IF A PROPER CARBON CREDIT PLAN WAS IN PLACE
agriculture at Kildalton College. Shane is set to join his dad on the farm and is busy developing his own ideas on how to expand the business.
For James it is onwards and upwards and his attention is now turning to his new