94% drop since 2004 in number of farmers penalised for rule breaches

THERE has been a huge drop over the past five years in the number of farmers penalised for rule breaches.

Agriculture Minister Brendan Smith told the annual conference of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association in Limerick, that considerable progress has been made in recent years in reducing the number of farm visits.

In 2004, some 18,000 farmers had an on-farm inspection. Last year, that figure was 11,314.