Changes to disadvantaged scheme could see some farmers lose out

Amendments to the EU-funded Disadvantaged Area Scheme could see thousands of hard-pressed Irish farmers excluded from payments, farm groups have cautioned.

The IFA and the ICSA have both called on Simon Coveney, the agriculture minister, to extend the Aug 24 application deadline for the 2012 scheme. This would allow farmers time to analyse the rule changes before submitting their applications.

The European Commission has added a retrospective requirement to have a stocking density of 0.3 livestock units per hectare for three consecutive months in 2011 — an increase from the previous rate of 0.15 livestock units per hectare.

Anyone who does not meet the new requirement can apply for a derogation. However, the deadline for such applications is this Friday.

ICSA president Gabriel Gilmartin said: “We know that around 8,000 farmers do not meet this new requirement, but I understand many of them only received the letter informing them of this late last week.

“I am therefore calling on the minister to extend the deadline to apply for a derogation beyond the current deadline.

“The minister needs to give farmers a chance to digest the changes that have been made to the [scheme] and submit the required information to apply for a derogation where necessary.”

Farmers who do not meet the new stocking density can apply for a derogation under various categories. One of these is participation in an agri-environmental scheme (such as AEOS or REPS).

Exceptions can also be made for participants in a National Parks and Wildlife Service farm plan scheme, or in cases of exceptional circumstances or force majeure. The Disadvantaged Area Scheme will also make allowances for new entrants to farming, defined as those whose farming careers began after Jan 1, 2010.

The Irish farmer groups have also expressed misgivings about the retrospective nature of these changes.

Mr Gilmartin said: “Changing the rules after the event sets a bad precedent. I would also hope the changes being made to the scheme this year do not result in any delay in payments. With the winter we are facing, it is crucial that payments are made on time.”

IFA’s hill committee chairman, Tom Fadian, wants Mr Coveney to extend the applications deadline to Sept 3. He also said farmers need time to determine which category to use to seek derogation.

Mr Fadian said that for hill farmers the main criteria to seek derogation are poor quality land, environmental designation such as SAC, SPA, and NHA, commonage framework plans which restrict stocking levels, and REPS/AEOS farmers.

Mr Fadian said: “In many cases, stock levels can’t be achieved due to ill health, animal disease, or where the farmers only entered farming recently. In relation to the stocking rate associated with sheep, we are advising farmers to send on their 2011 sheep census as well as the 2010 census which the Department of Agriculture are also using.

“The Department of Agriculture have got to take into account that many farmers were not in REPS 3 in 2011 and were awaiting an AEOS 3 scheme earlier this year, which the minister has so far failed to deliver on. In addition, new stocking rates are being established for commonage areas and again these were promised some time ago. Farmers in these situations must be taken into account.”