Energy and farm diversification options for farmers

Barry Caslin, Teagasc Energy & Rural Development Specialist, is on this week’s Beef Edge podcast to discuss energy and farm diversification options and the areas for farmers to consider.

It is a very big area including: anaerobic digestion; energy; solar; electricity; biomass; community energy; business diversification; food business start-ups; agri tourism; organics; forestry; bio-economy; and agri-tech.

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine recently launched Ireland’s National Biomethane Strategy and Barry outlines the potential in this area.

There are grants available for solar panels under TAMS, which has created huge interest, and Barry discusses key areas that farmers should consider.

Many farmers are interested in enterprise diversification. There are countless possibilities when trying to identify a realistic option for generating additional household income. Barry highlights possible diversification options. With the BIA Innovator hub set up in Athenry, Co. Galway, Barry also discusses the opportunities in relation to food business, with agri-tourism also expanding in recent years.

Listen in below:

You can find out more about diversification options at the upcoming Energy and Farm Business Show, taking place in Gurteen Agricultural College on July 18.

For more episodes from the Beef Edge podcast, produced on behalf of Teagasc by LastCastMedia.com, visit the Beef Edge podcast show page.