A total of 21 new policy-focused research projects have been awarded funding of €4m from the Department’s 2024 Policy and Strategic Studies Research Call. There is a wide array of projects outlined in Table 1, with many of particular interest given their potential impact in agricultural sectors. In announcing the projects, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with special responsibility for research, Martin Heydon TD, highlighted projects related to bovine tuberculosis (TB) and tillage feasibility studies recommended in the Food Vision Tillage Group.
A total of 21 new policy-focused research projects have been awarded funding of €4m from the Department’s 2024 Policy and Strategic Studies Research Call. There is a wide array of projects outlined in Table 1, with many of particular interest given their potential impact in agricultural sectors.
In announcing the projects, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with special responsibility for research, Martin Heydon TD, highlighted projects related to bovine tuberculosis (TB) and tillage feasibility studies recommended in the Food Vision Tillage Group.
He said: “There is a wide breadth of policy areas covered by the successful projects. This includes three projects related to TB, which will examine biosecurity measures and communication, modelling for badger population dynamics, and the association between herd bovine TB breakdown and herd nutritional, metabolic and immune status.
“I am also pleased to be able to award funding to two projects which directly address recommendations of the Food Vision Tillage Group: investigating the feasibility of oilseed crops processing in Ireland, and a feasibility assessment of organic feed milling,” the minister added.
Funding allocated
The 2024 call is reported as containing 28 areas of challenge and opportunity, which were developed across the Department, under the broad headings of food safety, animal health and welfare, agriculture, environmental sustainability, bioeconomy and forestry. Projects can be up to 12 or 24 months in duration, with funding of up to €100,000 or €250,000, respectively.
Concluding, Minister Heydon said: “My Department is committed to funding high-quality, public-good research that addresses knowledge gaps and develops the evidence for public policy, strategy and regulation.
“These 21 projects will make an important contribution to this and I look forward to their findings and outputs over the coming two years”.
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