Farm compensation proposal dropped

THE farm lobby yesterday welcomed a decision by the European Commission to drop its proposal to limit compensation paid to farmers who suffer a disease outbreak in their herds.

Under the proposal, farmers would have been unable to claim compensation for stricken animals unless more than 30% of the herd was affected, and even then would only have been able to claim between 75%-80% of the market value.

The IFA, ICMSA and ICSA said the commission’s proposal would have imposed financial hardship on farmers with a disease outbreak in their herds.