Up to the end of tranche eight, 104 farmers had applied to construct a new milking parlour through funding available under TAMS II (Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme) – specifically under the Young Farmer Capital Investment Scheme (YFCIS).
Data released to AgriLand by the Department of Agriculture shows that 101 farmers have received approval to proceed with constructing their milking parlours.
In addition, in the region of €2 million has already been advanced to applicants under the Young Farmer Capital Investment Scheme of TAMS for the development of new milking parlours.
When it comes to the grant aid available to purchase new milking equipment – specifically under the Dairy Equipment Scheme and the YFCIS – 45 farmers have applied for funding for a rotary milking parlour; 1,695 applications have been received for herringbone milking palours; and 256 applications have been submitted to the Department of Agriculture for robotic milking systems.
What is TAMS?
TAMS II first opened in June 2015 and is set to run until December 2020. This scheme is co-funded by the EU and the national exchequer under the Rural Development Programme (2014-2020). Over its duration, the scheme has a total allocation of over €395m.
TAMS II aims to provide farmers with grant aid to improve and/or build a specific range of farm buildings or purchase equipment that may benefit their farm businesses.
Farmers considering entering TAMS II need to make an investment of at least €2,000 to be eligible for grant aid under this scheme.
Under TAMS II, individual farmers can apply for grant aid of 40% on investments up to a ceiling of €80,000; this is a maximum individual payment of €32,000. A higher rate of grant aid is available for trained, young farmers.