21. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the way in which the Ireland–New Zealand joint research initiative will translate into practical, farm-level measures to support farmers in reducing greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining productivity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52200/26]

I recently announced a second phase of the Ireland and New Zealand research partnership, called the ‘Agriculture and Climate Joint Research and Technology Initiative’. This is specifically designed to advance, and where appropriate accelerate, the development of practical mitigation technologies and farm management approaches that can help farmers reduce greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining productivity and competitiveness.

The 2026 Call for Proposals under the Initiative places a strong emphasis on research that is directly relevant to commercial farming systems. The focus of proposals being sought under the Call is that they advance practical solutions that combines a range of mitigation measures or technologies across full production cycles and under real farm conditions to help farmers reduce greenhouse gas emissions from pasture-based livestock systems. These could include practices and technologies such as the use of feed additives, environmental inhibitors, breeding for animals with lower methane, use of feed materials to reduce emissions, and others.

Besides testing these when used in combination and across longer periods, researchers will also be required to demonstrate clear pathways for eventual implementation and adoption, including identifying barriers and enablers to uptake and ensuring that project outcomes can be translated into practical action on farms.

Farmer engagement, knowledge transfer and communication are also central requirements of the Call. Projects must include mechanisms to engage with farmers, advisory services and other stakeholders throughout the lifetime of the research. They must also provide clear knowledge transfer and communication plans for disseminating results and supporting uptake of research outputs by the sector.

The Call mission reflects the shared challenges and opportunities facing Ireland and New Zealand as leading pasture-based livestock producers. By combining expertise, funding and research capability from both countries, we can accelerate the development, validation and deployment of technologies and tools to achieve reductions in greenhouse gas emissions while safeguarding farm productivity and profitability.