This week’s episode of Farmland, which will be broadcast tomorrow (Tuesday, June 5), discusses the new Agri Climate Rural Environmental Scheme (ACRES) and the work that is being done to develop a new young farmer group.
In the programme, which will go live at 7:00p.m tomorrow, Eddie Punch, general secretary of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA), discusses the organisation’s concerns around the scheme’s capacity and its payment rates.
In the programme, Punch tells Agriland editor Stella Meehan that the estimated 50,000 capacity in the scheme will leave many farmers competing to take part – particularly because only 30,000 of these spots will be available to farmers operating outside of co-operation project zones.
Speaking about the payment rates offered under the ACRES scheme, Punch says that the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has fallen behind in its power to achieve its objectives by constantly asking farmers to do more with less.
New group for young dairy farmers
Later in the programme, Ronan O’Connor, an area development officer with the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA) outlines the work he has been doing to establish a specific, young farmers group within the ICMSA.
O’Connor explains the aims of the group, which include listening to members’ concerns, informing new entrants to the industry on the relevant farm policies and preventing isolation among the community.
He also tells Meehan that the group has taken off in south Tipperary and Kilkenny, where they have had six meetings, and states that he hopes it can be expanded to other regions in time.
The episode and podcast of Farmland will go live tomorrow on the Agriland platform. All episodes can be streamed via the award-winning digital platform, agriland.ie, and links will also be available across Agriland social media platforms.
All episodes of Farmland can be viewed by clicking here.