Public Invitation:

Minister for Social Protection, Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys will be in Bantry on Friday to meet the local community and participate in an event to plan for the future of rural communities.

‘Rural Roadmap to 2030’ is an event which will take place in the Westlodge Hotel, Bantry on Friday, January 13^th at 7pm. Minister Humphreys will be joined by her Fine Gael colleagues, Senator Tim Lombard, Fine Gael Seanad Spokesperson on Agriculture, Food, Forestry & Marine and Leas Chathaoirleach of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine and Councillor Caroline Cronin.

“There will be two panel discussions on the evening, the first of which will focus on innovation and education in farming for future-proofing the sector,” Senator Lombard explained.

“The second discussion will be chaired by Minister Humphreys and will give a rural outlook to 2030, with a focus on sustainability in the farming sector.”

In addition to Minister Humphreys, Senator Lombard and Councillor Colllins, attendees will hear presentations from:

• Nick Cotter- Cotter Agritech
• Grainne Hurley-Teagasc West Cork Regional Advisory Manager
• Finbarr O’Shea- Bantry Credit Union
• Enda Buckley-Director of Sustainability at Carbery
• Donal Sheehan- Project manager of the River BRIDE (Biodiversity Regeneration In a Dairying Environment) Project and dairy farmer in Castlelyons
• Owen O’Driscoll- Agricultural consultant Skibbereen & Kenmare

“This is set to be a very informative event, show-casing plenty of new developments in farming,” Senator Lombard said.

“Cotter Agritech, for example, is a very progressive company which has developed the ‘Cotter Crate’, a mechanical means of quickly dosing, vaccinating and tagging sheep.  It has also developed the ‘Smart Worm’ app, which reduces wormer use by 40% with no loss of performance. All are welcome to attend and we look forward to exchanging information with panellists and attendees so we can all continue to plan for our rural communities’ continuous development and efficiency.”