2572. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Agriculture; Food and the Marine the engagement his Department has had with the animal feed industry regarding increasing the use of Irish-grown grain in in animal feedstuffs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56762/26]

2573. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Agriculture; Food and the Marine if he has considered measures to increase the minimum inclusion of Irish-grown grain in animal feedstuffs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [56763/26]

I propose to take Questions Nos. 2572 and 2573 together.

My Department is the central Competent Authority responsible for the enforcement of EU legislation concerning animal feed. A prerequisite for safe food is safe animal feed and the focus of my Department’s controls is to ensure that feedingstuffs do not pose a risk to animal or public health, meet the prescribed minimum standards, are accurately labelled and fully traceable.

Accordingly, the sourcing and procurement of feed and feed materials is a matter for Feed Business Operators and the resulting feedingstuff complies with EU and Irish feed legislation in terms of, inter alia, its safety and nutritional composition.

Through the implementation of the recommendations of the Food Vision Tillage Group Report, there has been considerable work done aimed at achieving greater recognition of the sustainability of Irish grain, such as the development of a tillage module for AgNav to allow growers the opportunity to showcase the low-carbon footprint of Irish grain and the ongoing work in developing a Pilot Sustainability Assurance Scheme for tillage aligned with Origin Green. Together these initiatives will allow growers to provide tangible sustainability outputs that demonstrate the low-carbon credentials of Irish grain, strengthening market differentiation and supporting access to premium markets.

My Department remains committed to working closely with the tillage sector to implement the recommendations of the Food Vision Tillage Group Report, with a view to ensuring the sector's long-term sustainability in the years ahead.