Quota changes make it easier for partnerships
A new price for restructuring quota has also been announced by Agriculture and Food Minister Mary Coughlan.
The new rate is 17.5 cent/litre (80c/gal) in 2005, which will be reduced to not more than 12 cents/litre (55 cents/gal) in the 2006 scheme.
A number of deadlines in this year’s restructuring scheme have been brought forward, and the Minister urged farmers interested in participating to apply to their co-ops as soon as possible. For new entrant/parent milk production partnerships, it has been announced that the new entrant has priority access to the quota until the combined total of the partnership quotas reaches 500,000 litres.
Chairman of ICMSA’s dairy committee, Dominic Cronin welcomed the increased threshold. He said it addressed a major anomaly in the scheme, which debarred a farmer with more than 350,000 litres (77,000 gallons) from participating in a partnership with his son or daughter.
Macra’s national president Thomas Honner said the partnership scheme had given many young farmers a good start in dairying and the new joint limit would be fairer.
The Minister has also decided to increase the farm income limit to €24,000 in the case of new entrants in partnerships, and €27,000 in the case of other partners.
Rules for producers entering milk production partnerships have also been simplified. Restrictions on acquisition and sale of land prior to entry into partnership have been removed.
People entering partnerships will now be required to have produced at least 70% of their quota in the previous two years - changed from three years.
It will only be possible for one producer to qualify for partnership based on the production record in respect of any quota.
This rule will ensure that quota access opportunities provided in the partnership framework are reserved for genuine partnerships.
Family Farm Consolidation: The Minister has decided that the transfer of an entire quota to a family member without the transfer of land will be permitted, subject to certain conditions.
Currently, a person can lease land and quota to a family member and, after a year, the lessee can purchase the quota.
The change will assist consolidation and enable certain quota holders to relinquish quota and continue in farming and avail of the single farm payments.
It has also been decided that quota previously purchased from the restructuring scheme may be sold with land, within the family.
This removes a current anomaly, where such quota could be leased, gifted or inherited, but not sold with land within the family.
Full details of the revised milk quota arrangements will be available from co-operatives and dairies.
