The closing date for applications to the Horticulture Crisis Fund (HCF) has been extended by one week, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has said.
The original deadline had been today (Wednesday, November 1).
The extension means that the fund will close to applications at midnight of next Wednesday (November 8).
Completed application forms and supporting documentation should be submitted through the online portal by the closing date.
The HCF is a support measure worth €2.3 million that will be provided in the form of a once-off payment to growers of horticulture that are most affected by the continued high level of input costs.
Eligible crop growers include: Brown mushrooms; heated strawberries; field vegetables; field salad crops; apples; vertical farmed greens; and glasshouse high-wire crops.
According to the department, the support package will “help to ensure the short-term security and long-term viability of growers in these sub sectors”.
Payments will be made in January 2024, and eligible applicants will be paid based on the number of hectares in production.
In the case of mushrooms, growers will be paid on the weight in kilograms of mushrooms sold.
To receive the Horticulture Crisis Fund, growers must have a turnover of €50,000 or more, and a minimum of 3ha in production (field vegetables only) to be eligible to apply, and will need to provide production data as part of their application for support.
Final rates of payment will depend on the number of eligible applicants and area applied for.
The HCF is part of a total package of around €9.5 million that was announced in early October to assist tillage farmers and horticulture businesses.
The overall fund was allocated under the EU Agricultural Reserve.
The overall package allocated €7.148 million to the tillage sector and €2.383 million to the horticulture sector.
For tillage growers, a flat rate payment of €28/ha will be made on the area of oilseed rape, winter and spring oats, barley, wheat, and rye declared under the Basic Income Support for Sustainability Scheme (BISS) in 2023.
The minimum area for payment will be 5ha and payments will be capped at 100ha per grower. As with the horticulture fund, it is expected that the payments to tillage farmers will be made in January 2024.