The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has restricted 325 herds to date this year due to serious identification, registration and movement non-compliances.
A DAFM spokesperson told Agriland that 91 withdrawal notices have subsequently been issued to farmers who have engaged with the department to resolve the non-compliances identified at the inspection.
IDR inspections assess farmers’ compliance with livestock identification, registration and movement regulations.
As of last Friday (August 23), department officials had completed 3,276 IDR inspections this year, which resulted in 325 herds being issued with compliance notices, advising of a herd restriction, for serious breaches.
As part of the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), breaches of IDR rules began to be managed in a new way from 2023 onwards by the department.
Cross compliance or conditionality penalties can no longer be applied to a farmer’s direct payments for breaching these requirements.
In the event that corrective action is not taken by a farmer after a serious non-compliance is detected, the department has the power to issue a fixed payment notice (FPN), which is applied at a flat rate of €250.
Failure to pay this fine within 28 days may result in a court appearance and an increased risk of further inspection.
“No FPN’s have issued in relation to non-compliances identified as part of 2023 or 2024 IDR inspections, nor has any farmer faced a court appearance.
“The department is currently reviewing the herds that remain restricted and considering the next steps required,” the DAFM spokesperson said.
The department said that trends identified at IDR inspections to date show that farmers who were issued with compliance notices had multiple tagging and record keeping non-compliances.
In order to avoid an IDR Compliance Notice, the department reminded farmers of the following:
- Tag all livestock by tagging deadlines;
- Register all calves within seven days of tagging;
- Notify movements of all livestock promptly;
- Replace lost tags promptly;
- Keep the herd/flock register up-to-date at all times.
Conditionality replaced cross compliance in 2023 and does not include statutory management requirements with regard to animal identification and registration.
The total number of conditionality on-farm inspections carried out in 2023 was 1,982, including conditionality, local authority nitrates and ad hoc inspections.
The department restricted 160 herds last year for serious identification, registration and movement non-compliances.