The Government was accused of making a "disastrous mistake" by adopting "the lowest standards in Europe" for organic food production. But the Minister of State for Agriculture, Mr Noel Davern, denied an assertion from Mr Jim O'Keeffe (Fine Gael, Cork South West) that Ireland was the only European country to adopt and implement the EU minimum standard.
The EU standard referred to is Regulation 1804/99, which governs the organic livestock sector - it came into effect on August 24th last. It supplements Regulation 2092/91 covering the organic crop sector since 1992.
Less than 1 per cent of farming in the Republic was organic, said Mr Davern, and these initiatives would provide an opportunity for more farmers in this sector. "In Austria there were 2,000 organic farmers in 1992, and there are now 20,000. It affords an opportunity to have one Irish organic standard." Rather than lowering standards "to a common EU one", asked Mr William Penrose (Labour, Westmeath), could Ireland not "be individualistic and set our own?"
Dr Mary Upton (Labour, Dublin South Central) asked what funding had been set aside for organic food. A sum of £1.6 billion had been allocated to the Rural Enterprise Production Scheme (REPS), replied the Minister, "which will include some organic materials". A further £6 million had been allocated to the promotion of the organic system.