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Agri-Environment Training Scheme extended

The Agri-Environment Training Scheme (AETS) has been extended for an additional two months, allowing AETS facilitators to continue to offer courses in September and October 2022. The new closing date is 31 October, 2022. Announcing the extension, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue TD, said, “I am encouraged to see the participation rates in courses run under the Agri-Environment Training Scheme (AETS) to date, with over 21,000…

Status orange thunderstorm and fire warning

On the back of another heatwave, and despite the national weather forecaster’s issuing a status orange thunderstorm warning for yesterday and today, the Department of Agriculture has released an orange forest fire warning which is in effect until noon tomorrow (Tuesday). The effective period of the high fire risk warning expires at noon on 16 August, 2022. A consequence of current weather patterns, a high fire risk is deemed to…

DAFM reminds public not to feed horses and donkeys without owner’s consent

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) is urging members of the public not to feed horses and donkeys without the owner’s permission. Many people are enjoying walks along boreens and village roads this summer, and will most likely get the opportunity to see horses and donkeys up close. The Department is urging people, however, not to feed these animals without the owner’s permission. While it may be…

Horse farmers included in TAMS scheme

Charlie McConalogue, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), last week announced that he plans to include investments in the equine sector under TAMS in the next CAP regime beginning in January 2023. IFA Horse Project Team Chair Richard Kennedy welcomed the Minister’s comments at the Dublin Horse Show launch. “The IFA Horse Project Team, along with the full IFA executive and leadership, have fully supported the inclusion of…

New organic farming rates proposed

Senator Pippa Hackett, the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, yesterday announced proposed new enhanced rates for farmers participating in the organic farming scheme. These are subject to approval by the European Commission as part of the ongoing discussions on approval of Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan, and would apply from 1 January, 2023. Announcing the new rates the Minister said: “The budget proposed for…

Farmers must protect animals in warm weather

As Met Éireann expects high temperatures to continue this week as the warm weather system develops, farmers are advised to take steps to protect their livestock. Charlie McConalogue T.D., the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, said: “While the recent good weather is welcomed by the farming community across the country, we must remember that high temperatures can cause significant stress for livestock. It is important that farmers consider…

Grassland Farmer of the Year launch

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue TD launched the Grassland Farmer of the Year competition for 2022 in Johnstown Castle Estate yesterday. This is the sixth year of the competition, which recognises farmers who are achieving high levels of grass utilisation in a sustainable manner. The Grassland Farmer of the year competition is part of the Teagasc Grass10 Campaign, which is supported by the DAFM, Teagasc, Allied…

Apply for Tillage Incentive Scheme and Protein/Cereal Mix Crop Scheme

The online application system for the Tillage Incentive Scheme and Protein/Cereal Mix Crop Scheme is now open. Charlie McConalogue, Minister Agriculture, Food and the Marine, has announced that farmers wishing to apply for the scheme can do so themselves or through their advisor up to 20 July, 2022 by logging on to the Exceptional Aid System. Letters are now being issued to eligible applicants based on the crops declared on…

Downward sentiment causes grain prices to fall

Grain prices fell sharply the week of 24 June, 2022 with downward sentiment taking hold. MATIF Sep 22 closed 23 June at approximately €360/t – nearly 20% down on the peak in mid-May. Rapid progress in US wheat harvesting, an early European harvest and a very large Russian forecast appear to be exhibiting pressure on all commodity markets. Paris rapeseed (Nov 22) closed at €718.50 on Tuesday (21 June) and…

Delivering on the Ambition of Food Vision 2030

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and Teagasc co-organised a recent seminar and workshop on Research & Innovation for Sustainable Food Systems: Delivering on the Ambition of Food Vision 2030. More than 120 delegates from across Ireland’s agri-food sector, higher education and civil society gathered at the Teagasc Ashtown Food Research Centre in Dublin for the event. On the day participants explored the central role research and…

Forest fire warning this weekend

Current weather conditions have prompted a Condition Orange forest fire warning issued by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM). This will remain in place until Monday, 30 May, 2022, at midday. DAFM states that, “A high-pressure weather system which is currently located to the south of Ireland will move northwards and influence northerly airflows with low to moderate humidity and moderate wind speeds as the weekend progresses.”…

Farmers struggling to meet BEAM repayments should contact the DAFM

Farmers facing financial difficulties and who are unable to make repayments under the Beef Exceptional Aid Measure (BEAM) have been urged to contact the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM). According to the department over 34,500 farmers applied for BEAM at its closing date of 20 September 2019, with €78 million in payments issued to participating farmers. However, some 11,000 BEAM participants did not meet some, or…

Increase in Organic Farming Scheme applications

There has been a 20% increase in applications for the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS), this is according to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM). The Minister of State at the department, Senator Pippa Hackett says there were 380 new applicants when the scheme closed on Friday, 22 April, 2022, which is an increase of almost a fifth on 2021 numbers. The DAFM says that close to 700 farmers…

DAFM announces €32 million funding for coastal projects

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has announced €32.7 million in funding for 110 coastal projects in Ireland. The scheme arose from a recommendation of the Seafood Taskforce which was set up in March 2021. It was set-up to look at the impacts of Brexit on the fishing sector and coastal communities. Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue says that the department is administering…

Decline in sheep kill figures, says DAFM

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has released the latest sheep kill figures which indicate that there has been a decrease in the number of hoggets slaughtered this week, with the number at 48,683 head. This is a decline of 6,404 head from the previous week. However, ewe and ram throughput saw an increase of 564 from the previous week, totalling 4,195 head. Weekly throughput had been…

DAFM to set-up National Fertiliser Database

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is addressing concerns regarding rising fertiliser costs by establishing a National Fertiliser Database. DAFM has confirmed that it held its first meeting with its Stakeholder Consultative Committee this week. The committee consists of representatives from the fertiliser industry, fertiliser retailers agricultural contractors, farm organisations, Teagasc and The Agricultural Consultants Association (ACA). This forms part of the process of introducing a National fertiliser…

Cabinet approves support package for pig sector

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has confirmed that cabinet has approved a €15.8 million support package for the pig sector. The Department says that “under the exceptional aid package, pig farmers will be eligible for a maximum payment of €70,000 per undertaking, subject to conditionality.” However the package includes a condition of a “10% decrease in production” for the sector. Irish Farmers’ Association president, Tim Cullinan has expressed…

Avian influenza found in wild birds

There have been reports of numbers of wild birds contracting avian influenza. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has confirmed that since 3 November 2021, 80 wild birds in Ireland have tested positive for the pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1. The DAFM noted that the environment may also be contaminated by wild bird droppings. According to a department spokesperson, this indicates that infection pressure from bird flu…

2022 Call for Proposals in Agriculture announced

A collaboration between Ireland, Northern Ireland and the U.S has been in operation for 16 years, and together they have announced the 2022 Call for Proposals in Agriculture. The partnership, under the US-Ireland Research and Development is a product of the Northern Ireland Peace Process. It involves these governments working together for scientific progress by awarding grants for research on a competitive basis. The partnership was launched in 2006 and…

DAFM closer to establishing a food ombudsman

With various solutions under discussion addressing concerns regarding the increase of input costs in the farming sector, it appears as though the first steps in creating a food ombudsman appear to be in its infancy stage. According to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), the office is a step closer to establishing it. Approval from Cabinet is expected on Tuesday, while Minister for Agriculture, Food and the…

Dip in sheep kill figures according to DAFM

The latest sheep kill figures reported by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), shows a decline in numbers for the week ending 12 March. The figure for each of the last four weeks is over the 50,000 head mark, however it is the fourth week in a row that throughput figures have dipped. DAFM confirms that last week’s figure stood at 51,730 sheep that were processed, indicating…

DAFM confirms establishment of a food security committee

As Ukraine and Russia are global players in the feed and fertiliser trade, Russia’s invasion there has had global repercussions. Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue has announced that a National Fodder and Food Security Committee is being established in response to the current crisis. In a meeting held earlier this week, the minister together with officials from DAFM discussed problems that they may encounter as supply…

Dip in sheep kill figures for week ending 26 February

There has been a decrease in the number of sheep kill for last week, with the recent figure of sheep processed said to be at 53,141. The figures were released by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM). Analysts have compared the recent statistics to the same period in 2021 and there has been a significant change in figures, however throughput appears to be surpassing last year’s figures.…

Sheep kill decreases as weekly stats are revealed

There has been a decrease in the number of sheep kills for the week ending February 19. According to figures released by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), 55,244 sheep were processed marginally lower than the week before with a total of 374 head. The figures additionally reveal that the number of lambs/hoggets slaughtered last week came to 49,730 which represented a decrease of 84 head from…

Concerns mount as roll-out of AECM approaches

Questions have been raised surrounding the new Agri-Environment Climate Measure (AECM). Irish Farmers’ Association Rural Development chair, Michael Biggins says that higher AECM payment rates must be available to all farmers who participate. But as he raises the concern that farmers should be paid higher payment rates from the scheme a more pressing issue has emerged. This as some say that the proposed budget for the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), of…