The Irish Farmers Association has praised a Vegan Society of Ireland proposal for a national plant based food fund as “really, really welcome”. 

Typically, the two groups have strong disagreements on the future of Irish farming. 

However, ahead of Budget 2027, both sides have urged the Government to do more to help the horticultural sector.  

“The Vegan Society recently carried out a national survey and found that four in five Irish adults want to eat more fruit and veg,” spokesperson Gerard Kiely explained on Newstalk Breakfast. 

“But we import about 83% of it, with only 70 commercial vegetable growers now left in the country supplying all our supermarkets - down from around 600 in the 1990s.

“What we're calling for is that a Danish style plant-based food fund would help farmers move into growing fruit and veg with capital grants and export expert advice.” 

Mr Kiely added that the Danes have since made huge “progress” in improving their food security. 

Vegetable farming in Wexford. Picture by: Alamy.com. 

Also on the programme, IFA President Francie Gorman agreed that more support for the horticultural  sector would be “really, really welcome”. 

“For years now, [we] have highlighted the reducing number of commercial horticultural growers in the country and we're continually engaging on their behalf with Government to try and get more support for them,” he said. 

“There are huge issues around the cost of labour, around the cost of energy, direct supports for them to invest in their business because there's so few of them there now. 

“Most of them are hugely, highly capitalised businesses that need massive amounts of investment and if you're going to get people to come into the business, it requires such an investment.”

Main image: Homegrown carrots for sale in Cork. Picture by: Alamy.com.