200,000-litre milk quotas awarded to 70 new entrants to dairying

SEVENTY new entrants to dairying have each been allocated a milk quota of 200,000 litres under the new entrants scheme. Applications were considered through a selection process conducted by an independent assessment group chaired by John Tyrrell, director general of ICOS.

Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Brendan Smith said: “When I announced this scheme I expressed the hope that it would be well-subscribed and that it would identify people who have a genuine future in dairying. I think it has been a great success on both counts. The applications were high not only in number, but also in quality.

“The feedback from the assessment group has been extremely positive, in that while the 70 successful applicants clearly merited their selection, the overall standard across all applications was very high.