Pat McCormack told Newstalk Breakfast that “if there is to be a scheme, it needs to be a voluntary scheme. That’s absolutely critical because there’s no point in culling numbers from an individual who has borrowed on the back of a huge financial commitment on the back of achieving a certain target that’s taken from under him.
Up to 65,000 dairy cows a year could be culled as the Government moves to bring the agriculture sector in line with climate targets, according to a report by the Irish Independent.
An internal Department of Agriculture briefing paper sought to find ways to help the sector “close the gap” on emissions.