Grants of €1.1m announced by Offaly Minister for twelve organic food projects

Offaly's Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Senator Pippa Hackett, today (Thursday) announced that twelve proposals to promote organic food production have been selected and awarded funding of €1.1 million.

A project from the Irish Organic Association, based in Golden Island, Athlone, was among the twelve to be awarded grant funding.

Its funding will help to support a social media campaign highlighting Irish organic produce across a range of sectors including beef, sheep, dairy, cereals and pulses, horticulture, poultry, eggs and aquaculture.

"Earlier this year I announced a call for projects to promote organic production in Ireland, in line with the European Organic Action Plan," Minister Hackett stated.

"I want to thank all the applicants for the quality of the wide and varied proposals that were received by my Department. The projects selected cover a very broad area, from living mulches to advisory support for organic farmers to the potential for organic butter, and everything in between.

"This call will further support the Programme for Government target of 10% of all land farmed organically by 2030."

The projects that will share the €1.1m in funding include three from the Leitrim-based National Organic Training Skillnet.

Other successful projects were from ACA Tipperary; Irish Organic Milk Producers Ltd in Waterford; Organic Growers of Ireland; Dr. Jack Fahey; Irish Organic Milk Suppliers Co-Op Society Ltd; Limerick Community Grocery CLG aka The Urban Co-Op; the Leitrim-based Irish Agroforestry Forum; and Organic Trust, based in Kildare.