Last Friday, Minister Pippa Hackett, Minister of State of the Irish Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine Affairs, with responsibility for land use and biodiversity, welcomed the international recognition achieved by the Irish initiative "Agriculture for Nature" among their international peers. The Farming for Nature initiative developed by Burren Beo in 2018 aims to help recognize and support farmers who grow or wish to grow in a way that improves the natural health of the field.

A global search was recently completed to find innovators capable of bringing together the key actors who preserve and restore biodiversity. The Farming for Nature initiative highlights the positive roles farmers play in caring for nature on their land, it almost failed to claim first prize, finishing second in Vittel and the Ashoka's Act for Biodiversity Challenge. More than 200 projects were evaluated in the challenge. Contest judges praised Farming for Nature for making a striking and innovative contribution, noting that Farming for Nature, funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine, along with the National Park and Wildlife Service (NPWS), is generating changes among farmers to take care of nature. Farming for Nature will receive € 40,000 and will also have access to an accelerator program with the aim of sharing what has worked so well in Ireland with other European countries.

Minister Hackett praised Farming for Nature and said: "I congratulate Farming for Nature on receiving this prestigious award. The Farming for Nature initiative deserves great recognition for its fantastic work in enhancing the biodiversity of farmland in Ireland by supporting to agricultural practices and by identifying, promoting and assisting farmers who enhance the biodiversity of agricultural land. "

"I am delighted to provide financial resources, along with NPWS, to the Farming for Nature initiative."