Old problems with new guidance, says ICSA

ICSA suckler chairman Dermot Kelleher has welcomed a Department of Agriculture booklet on land eligibility, but says farmers still need areas to be clarified.

There is confusion over density of rushes per hectare, and the meaning of “within the parcel or red-lined area” to define lands eligible for supports.

The department issued the booklet in response to a long-running controversy over fines for land-parcel identification system overclaims, relating to land parcels which farmers claimed as marginal, but which were then assessed as ineligible for EU eco-focused supports.