Social Farming Ireland celebrates in Mayo its strong links with Care Farming Netherlands

The Social Farming Ireland team gathered for an event to mark the Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

They celebrated and strengthened the long-standing relationship between Ireland and the Kingdom of the Netherlands, with a particular focus on our shared commitment to social farming, as Ireland holds the Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

They were delighted to welcome two very special guests, Ann Derwin Ambassador of Ireland to the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Maaike Van Koldam Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Ireland.

A morning seminar was followed by a followed by an afternoon visit to a local social farm, “The Shore Farm”, where the two ambassadors rounded off three days of engagements in Co. Mayo.

At a seminar in the morning, held at the Great National Hotel in Ballina, the audience heard from speakers from both the Netherlands and Ireland who reflected on the practice of social farming, the connections between Ireland and the Kingdom of the Netherlands and we heard how social farming and care farming works in an EU context.

Social Farming Ireland project manager at Leitrim Development Company Brian Smyth welcomed everyone and both he and Prof Jim Kinsella - Agricultural Extension and Rural Development, University College Dublin, spoke of the long-term relationship between Ireland and the Netherlands regarding the development of Social Farming.

Ireland has sought knowledge and experience from Europe in its development of Social Farming since 1999 and it has been a slow burn in its development in Ireland.

The audience heard from the local Social Farming Ireland office hosted by South West Mayo Development Company, CEO Sabina Trench.

Sabina spoke of her admiration for the farmers who open up their farms to host people and improve their lives, noting that they are a wonderful resource in rural Ireland.

Insights into the development and evolution of Care farming in the Netherlands came from Anouk Hafkamp - Care Farmer and Development and Relations Coordinator at the Federation of Care Farming in the Netherlands.

The development of care farming in the Netherlands is some years ahead of Ireland having started in the late nineties. She advocated for a single framework supported regionally as the best way forward for success.

Ireland and the Netherlands can learn from each other by rethinking how we care for people, connect them with nature, and create more inclusive communities.

Local Social Farmers, Emer Quinn and Kelly Doherty, spoke about the ordinary things they offer on their farms for the benefits of the social farming participants.

They discussed how social farming has enhanced their farms, from a health and safety perspective, as well as being an important diversification opportunity for them both.

But above all, making a difference in someone's life is the essence of why they choose to be social farmers.

The attendance heard about a young 14 year old who attended a farm, initially not wanting to get out of the car without a family member staying on the farm with her, progressing to staying for the full three and a half hours just with the farmer and working with other participants too.

The girl has since returned to full time education after an absence of one and a half years!

Laura Frissen and Louise Mayer Researchers from Maastricht University shared their insights into Green care farms in the Netherlands for people with dementia.

With a shift in government policy significantly away from traditional public-funded care homes toward keeping seniors living independently at home for longer, many farms are offering support for those with dementia.

With costs remaining similar there is growing evidence that outcomes for people are better if care provided in the more natural setting of a farm, providing a homelike setting with access to ordinary everyday activities. Plenty of food for thought for the future of dementia supports and the role farming can play in this in an Irish context.

Dr. Mary Brennan Research and Policy Officer SoFI LDCo spoke about the research and its key role in our development to date.

Over two decades, it has generated the evidence needed to support government funding, inform disability and rural development agendas, demonstrate social farming's value as a diversification option for farmers, and position it as an effective model of community-based support.

As Professor Kinsella eluded to in his closing comments: “Collaboration, patience, building evidence and having a common goal all rooted by belief are the key elements to catapult us forward towards social farming being firmly embedded in Health and Social Care Services”.

The group travelled to Emer Quinn’s social farm “The Shore Farm”, where they welcomed the two ambassadors.

Ambassador Anne Derwin shared with the audience her background as a Vet and how she first heard about social farming.

She was one of the first champions of social farming within the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, which resulted in the Social Farming Ireland Network being formed.

Ambassador Maaike Van Koldam spoke of the profound impact care farming and social farming has on people and wished every success and further collaboration to all involved in both Ireland and the Netherlands.

This event highlighted the many shared experiences between Ireland and the Netherlands in supporting people through social and care farming, reinforcing the value of continued collaboration, learning and exchange between both countries.

This initiative was funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs' Communicating Europe Initiative (CEI).

For more information about Social Farming Ireland or this event please contact socialfarming@ldco.ie or 071 9641772 or at https://www.socialfarmingireland.ie/