9,000 farmers need help

ARE Irish farmers coping better with their paper work? It is not that long ago since farm organisations were highlighting example after example of farmers falling foul of the huge amount of form-filling needed to qualify for €3 billion per year of Brussels payments.

Maybe now farmers are pre-occupied with bigger problems, such as decoupling and the nitrates directive.

Or, maybe they have become more efficient at their office work, after 12 years of premiums.