Coveney congratulated for CAP deal

Congratulations flooded in from across Europe for Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney’s work in brokering a partial CAP reform in Brussels yesterday — but the main farm organisations at home were understandably apprehensive about what amounts to a major change in the direction of EU agriculture policy.

The Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) said tens of thousands of farms will lose money, and some would be challenged to stay viable.

From 2015, the €1.2bn annual single payment which bankrolls Irish farmers will be divided more evenly, so that every land- owner gets at least 60% of the national per hectare average payment (in Ireland, about €150/ha).