The Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) has said that the government aid package for horticulture is a "positive" step, but soft fruit growers have been excluded. 

The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine announced a €2.8 million support package for the Irish horticulture sector.

The funding was approved by Cabinet yesterday (April 13), and will support “high-wire protected glass house producers of tomatoes, cucumber and peppers impacted, field vegetable producers, mushroom producers and commercial apple producers”.

IFA Field Vegetable and Protected Crops Committee vice chairman Martin Flynn said: “The package falls short of what is needed, given the huge input surge in the sector. In addition, it appears soft fruit growers have been inexplicably excluded. 

The protected crop sector has encountered a five-fold increase in energy costs in recent months, according to the IFA.

The association added that across all horticulture sub-sectors, there has been a sharp increase in the cost of labour, packaging materials, fertiliser, energy, peat-based growing media and other inputs that are essential elements of production.

According to the recently published report by economist Jim Power, commissioned by the IFA, the number of growers has fallen by 60%.

“Given the spiralling costs, without adequate support, producers are facing hugely significant decreases in margins which cannot be recouped by price increases alone," Flynn added.

"Retailers must also continue to negotiate increased costs with growers,” he said.

"The importance and potential of horticulture is recognised in the Programme for Government, but if proper supports are not given to the sector, the plans will not materialise and a considerable opportunity will be lost for rural Ireland."