Farms to get a carbon balance sheet under new programme

Agrinewal identifies actions to help the wider agricultural sector reach net zero carbon emissions and beyond.

PEOPLE who watched the recent Meath and Sligo All Ireland minor football semi-final in Croke Park or on television would have seen the name of the animal nutrition company Devenish on the jerseys of both teams.

In collaboration with global professional services firm Accenture, Devenish has recently launched a sustainable farming initiative called Agrinewal.

The aim is to help decarbonise the global agriculture sector by supporting farmers to continue to produce nutritious meat and milk while dramatically improving their carbon balance.

It estimates the initiative will enable over five million tons of carbon to be removed from the atmosphere and stored in plants and soils by 2030.

This would create new value for farmers, and substantially accelerate the achievement of climate goals while also improving biodiversity and overall farm resilience.

Using the latest cloud-based technology, it provides a carbon balance sheet and identifies actions to help the wider agricultural sector reach net zero carbon emissions and beyond.

Enterprise Ireland provided €400,000 in funding for Agrinewal, which aims to improve on-farm financial performance, soil health, animal welfare and water quality, while reducing harmful greenhouse gas emissions.

It also opens-up the possibility of new income streams for farmers from carbon farming and data analytics and allows them to maximise the potential of their land in a sustainable fashion.

Devenish chief executive Richard Kennedy said Agrinewal's purpose is to heal the planet and create value for farmers, processors, consumer brands and governments.

“Our vision is to enable carbon neutral farming on a global scale while at the same time empowering farmers to increase revenues from their work to provide healthy, nutritious food.

"Devenish's farming research and science knowledge, coupled with technology from Accenture, makes for a clear differentiation from other farm management systems.

“Agrinewal will improve farm incomes through improved farm efficiencies and performance, as well as introducing new value through carbon while working towards solving the existential threats to farming and environmental issues,” he said.

Enterprise Ireland chief executive Leo Clancy said the initiative will further elevate Ireland's status as a global leader in solutions for future, greener and more productive agriculture.

Tim Cody, managing director (products) at Accenture in Ireland, said the move will drive transformational change for both the food and the agricultural industries, putting Ireland at the forefront of innovation in this important area, he said.

Professor Gerry Boyle, director of Teagasc, which is supporting Agrinewal, said carbon sequestration in soils, woodlands and hedgerows is a very important part of the overall climate balance of a farm.

“Teagasc has a lot of expertise in measuring and modelling whole farm greenhouse gas balance and we look forward to collaborating with Devenish around the use of these models,” he said.

Devenish and Teagasc have also created a public-private partnership to work, demonstrate and deliver cutting-edge technologies to help farms and the wider industry reach tightening environmental targets.

Both bodies will work together under the Teagasc Signpost Programme to prompt climate action by all Irish farmers.

The partnership is designed to achieve early progress in reducing emissions from Irish agriculture while also improving water quality and biodiversity.

Devenish research sites at Dowth in Meath and Aclare, Co. Sligo, will be included in the Teagasc Signpost demonstration farms programme.

They will operate under a co-designed sustainability plan built around the implementation of sustainable technologies.

Teagasc will site carbon monitoring technology at Dowth, which will then become part of the National Agricultural Soil Carbon Observatory.

Roberta McDonald, Sustainable Solutions Lead at Devenish, said the scale of change required to instil sustainability in Ireland’s agriculture and food sector are considerable.

But ambitious organisations such as Devenish and Teagasc have the skills and knowledge to set the sector apart from the rest of the world.

“Our ambition is to provide solutions to achieve change in the sector through a blend of innovative and original technologies, backed by research and science,” she said.

Richard Kennedy, chief executive, said Devenish, in partnering with Teagasc, has access to some of the best industry-leading knowledge and science in the world.

"By pooling our talents, we will be able to create the right mix of technologies to place Ireland at the forefront of sustainable food production,” he said.

Teagasc director designate, Professor Frank O Mara said the growing environmental challenges facing food producers requires a collective effort, bringing all resources together, to assist farmers in making the necessary changes.

The Teagasc-Devenish partnership will help the agri industry play its part in meeting the climate challenge, he said.

Founded in 1952 in Belfast, Devenish provided products and services to the agricultural sector mainly through home mixers and the feed industry in the Irish market. The current management team acquired the company in 1997 and changed its name to Devenish Nutrition with a strategy to grow the business substantially across multiple species and geographical boundaries.

The company now has sites in Ireland, Britain, the United States, Turkey and Uganda, employs 750 people globally and trades in over 50 countries.

Reporting: The Irish Examiner