Farmers call for more funding for liming programme to 'satisfy demand'
The €8m National Liming Programme 2023 opened for applicants in mid-March and closed on April 20. For participating farmers, the measure will provide €16 per tonne of calcium ground limestone or magnesium ground limestone applied.
Farmers are calling for more funding to be allocated to the National Liming Programme to "satisfy demand".
Irish Farmers' Association rural development chairman Michael Biggins has called for the Department of Agriculture to ensure that all farmers who applied for the programme are accepted into the scheme in full.
His comments follow the department confirming in recent days the "huge interest" among farmers in the programme, with 4.5m tonnes sought by 41,000 applicants.
The €8m National Liming Programme 2023 opened for applicants in mid-March and closed on April 20.
For participating farmers, the measure will provide €16 per tonne of calcium ground limestone or magnesium ground limestone applied.
"There’s huge focus on farmers regarding the climate challenge. However, what isn’t acknowledged is the significant ambition among farmers to improve on-farm efficiencies and their environmental footprint," Michael Biggins said.
"There’s huge demand for the National Liming Programme because farmers want to improve their soil fertility and thereby reduce chemical fertiliser usage."
Earlier in the year, there were 46,000 applicants for 30,000 places in the new agri-environmental scheme ACRES, and Mr Biggins said that the minister "found a way to get all applicants into the scheme".
"He now needs to do the same for tranche 2 of ACRES later in the year, but more immediately for farmers who applied to the National Liming Programme," Mr Biggins added.
"Limiting support per tonne or eligible volumes will prove counterproductive overall."
Due to the unprecedented level of demand for the programme, the Department of Agriculture said this week that, in line with the programme’s terms and conditions, it will have to limit approvals to stay within the allocated budget for the programme.
