Irish farmers under pressure to cull cattle to meet climate goals

Gearoid Maher is a fifth generation Irish dairy farmer. He stands in a field that looks like it’s full of weeds. He planted chicory and plantain as well as brassica, kale, clover, kale leaf, and kale leaves to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

He feels that dairy farmers such as himself are unfairly being blamed when Ireland struggles to meet its ambitious climate goals.

Ireland’s cows, which belch methane — the gas that is responsible for over a quarter global warming — are its worst climate offenders.

The government has therefore proposed to eliminate almost 200,000 cows in the next three year period. There are 7.1mn cows on the island, of which 1.6mn for dairy.

This drastic measure was seen as an effective way to achieve a 25 percent reduction in agricultural emissions before 2030. Ireland saw the biggest increase in greenhouse gas emission in the EU during the last quarter in 2022, compared to the same period in 2020. It also has the highest methane emissions.

Maher uses multi-species fields to reduce emissions at his 210-acre farm, located in County Limerick, south-west Ireland. He has also reduced the use of pesticides and nitrogen fertilisers by half.

“There are no chemicals or fertilisers.” He says, “This is ready to graze.”

nearly 40% all emissions are generated by farming on an island known for its grass-fed beef and dairy. The Irish government set a goal to reduce the nation’s total emissions by 51% by the end decade. This will help them reach their net-zero target by 2050.

The progress is painfully slow. According to Ireland’s independent Environmental Protection Agency, the overall carbon emissions fell by just 1.9% last year. The agricultural sector managed to reduce its emissions by only 1.2 percent, a significant improvement from 2021 when they rose by 3.6 percent.

Last month, the Climate Change Advisory Council (another independent body) warned that Ireland would not be able to meet its overall targets unless “urgent action is taken immediately”.

According to the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation, dairy farmers feel that they are being unfairly blamed for their herd growth of 38 percent over the last decade.

Maher, a 38-year-old farmer with 110 cows, said: “It feels like a bullseye on our backs.” The media portrays us as climate denialists and climate killers. We were the first to notice climate change. “We are changing things in our small way.”

Last year, climate activists who claim that Irish agriculture is ” non-sustainable”, marched in front of Ireland’s Dail Parliament with a sign saying “Meat + Dairy = Climate Crisis”.

On a lush, green island, where archeological remains indicate that dairying has taken place for over 6,000 years.

The dairy industry supports 54,000 Irish jobs, and in 2022 it will bring in an export record of €6,8bn.

Conor Mulvihill is the director of Dairy Industry Ireland. The organization represents dairy producers, manufacturers, and nutrition companies. Ireland has around 18,000 dairy farms, most of which are small rural cooperatives.

He said that culling 200,000 dairy cattles would be the same as taking 1 million cars off of the road.

The plan was outlined in a document that the Irish Independent newspaper obtained in late May through a Freedom of Information Request. The plan has not been approved nor made public policy.

Mulvihill stated that not only would this hammer an industry that is highly profitable and supplies 130 markets, and which Ireland claims to be very efficient when it comes to emissions but also that it would risk more milk, butter, and cheese being imported from countries that have worse environmental credentials than Ireland.

Tony Tuohy is a former dairy producer turned beef producer in County Limerick who has 90 heifers at his farm.

According to the ICBF the beef herd has already shrunk by almost a quarter over the last decade. Tuohy stated that “beef farmers barely make enough money to survive”. Dairy is more profitable, but herds have grown since 2015 when EU quotas, introduced in 1984, were abolished. “That blew away the dam.” Tuohy stated that it allowed everyone to produce what they wanted and let the herd grow too large. Ireland’s Agriculture and Food Development Authority (Teagasc) said in its latest emissions mitigation report that targets could be hit if farmers adopted new methods — as Maher has been doing — fast and on a large scale. A 14 per cent fall in nitrogen fertiliser use was the most significant driver of the fall in 2022 emissions.

Teagasc estimates that the total number of cows will decline to 6,8mn in 2030. The agency estimates that if farmers adopt new technologies in a significant way, emissions will fall to 17mn tons by 2030. This is roughly the same as the 17.25mn target for the sector.

Karl Richards said that large herd reductions were a last resort to achieve these goals.

Richards stated that if the herd size dropped to 6.5mn emissions could drop even further to 16.4mn tons. Richards said that by combining a high adoption rate with a slight reduction in the herd size, the target could be achieved.

Pat McCormack is the president of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association. He saw the potential in the voluntary herd-reduction scheme suggested by a panel created by the Agriculture Ministry last year.

According to the proposal of the ministry, farmers would be paid €3,000 per cow. This amounts to almost €200mn a yearly. McCormack, however, said that nothing was confirmed and asked: “If we don’t have a budget, then what are you talking about?”

Agriculture ministry officials said they “are currently exploring” the proposal to reduce the price. Analysts say that elections are coming up in 18 months, and the parties will be eager to win over rural voters.

Dale Crammond of Meat Industry Ireland said that a better plan is to slaughter cattle sooner for beef. He said that this “has the potential to reduce carbon emissions in a significant way”.

There is some comfort for farmers. Marie Donnelly is the chairperson of the Climate Change Advisory Council. She says that “agriculture” is not a bogeyman. Transport is the biggest problem we face in Ireland right now.

Maher the dairy farmer is certain about one thing: “If we are to sell ourselves as a country that is environmentally friendly, we must do more.”