2,500 farmers to get €4m for calf equipment

Every eligible Calf Investment Scheme application will be funded at the maximum grant rate, said Agriculture Minister Michael Creed last week.

This follows the scheme’s budget being increased from the original €1.5m to €4m, in light of the significant demand for this scheme, and the Covid-19 pandemic.

Grant approvals will begin to issue this week to applicants in the scheme, which supports investments for calf rearing and welfare. Some 2,500 farmers will be directly funded.

The minimum and maximum investments are €1,000 and €7,500, excluding VAT.

The grant aid is 40% for applications meeting all the terms and conditions of the scheme. The maximum grant for any applicant is €3,000

The primary investment focus is on calf feeding systems such as computerised calf feeders, milk carts with mixer included, and calf teat feeders. When a farmer purchases one of these, they were also eligible to receive support for the purchase of other items, such as calf milk heaters, calf forage/hay racks, calf meal troughs, calf feed barriers and calf pen dividers.

The once-off scheme for 2020 was open for applications January 7-28, 2020. The closing date for receipt of claims is June 30, 2020.

Payment claims lodged after June 30, 2020, will be subject to a 5% reduction of aid per week or part thereof received late, up to a maximum of four weeks.

Claims received on or after July 29, 2020, will result in rejection of the payment claim and zero payment.