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March 4, 2021 1:54 pm
The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA) has proposed that the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) immediately reviews the reference costs being used for Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) investments to reflect the increased cost of materials in recent months.
It follows a meeting of the Farmers Charter Committee today (Thursday, March 4).
TAMS provides grants for on-farm capital investment and offers grant aid of 40% towards the cost of certain investments and up to 60% in the case of young farmers.
Increased costs
Chairperson of ICMSA Farm and Rural Affairs Committee, Denis Drennan, said that the cost of steel has increased substantially with the result that farmers expecting a 40% or 60% grant will see a substantially reduced grant in reality.
March 3, 2021 2:47 pm
The decision by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to extend the current arrangements on TB testing has been met with approval by farm organisations.
The department confirmed earlier today (Wednesday, March 3) that the current arrangements – which were put in place due to Covid-19 – will be extended until June 1.
Pat Farrell, the chairperson of the Irish Farmers’ Association’s (IFA’s) Animal Health Committee, said it was a “good move”.
He remarked that the extension will allow farmers “to plan ahead for the duration of calf sales with clarity on the movement requirements”.
According to Farrell, the flexibilities on testing dates and the 28-day grace period after a test falls due will “allow farmers plan TB tests without taking unnecessary risks”.