Thursday 9 August 2018

Energy efficiency scheme to help Irish dairy farmers milk savings

A new grant scheme that supports the installation of certain energy efficient technologies for dairy farmers has been launched in Ireland.

The Sustainable Energy Authority in Ireland (SEAI) in collaboration with Teagasc, the Agriculture and Food Development Authority, is offering up to €400,000 (£359,678) to farmers investing in energy-saving vacuum and milk pump technology.

The scheme will assist farmers to understand their energy consumption and patterns of usage for milking as well as analyse their power use pattern.

It is open to all dairy farmers who supply major co-operatives and is expected to help them reduce costs and increase profitability, with the funding covering up to 40% of the total eligible costs.

The SEAI said: “Energy efficiency can strengthen the competitiveness of dairy farmers by helping them to cut costs, freeing up resources that can be invested in more productive activities and can make them more resilient to volatile milk prices while helping to mitigate carbon emissions.”