Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue has announced that advance payments to farmers under the 2023 Fodder Support Scheme have commenced.
The minister’s department has commenced issuing advance payments under the 2023 scheme to over 67,000 eligible applicants this week. Each farmer will receive an advance payment of 57% of their total payment due in 2023.
The 2023 scheme is a continuation of the 2022 Fodder Support Scheme, and aims to incentivise mainly drystock farmers to grow fodder (silage and/or hay) in 2023 to ensure the maximum amount of cattle and sheep feed is grown.
Successful applicants for the 2022 Fodder Support Scheme were eligible to apply for the 2023 scheme.
The minister commented: “These payments, along with the 2022 Fodder Support Scheme payments issued in recent weeks, will further assist farmers in dealing with the increase in agricultural input costs, in particular for chemical fertliliser, and the impact that will have on the quantity of fodder produced and conserved next year.”
He added: “I have stated previously that I will continue to monitor the situation around the price of agricultural inputs into 2023 and, in the event that they remain high, I will be seeking additional funding for this scheme.”
The initial budget for the Fodder Support Scheme is €30 million, with an overall payment rate of up to €100/ha.
As part of the 2023 Fodder Support Scheme, applicants agreed to the terms and conditions of the scheme which state that, where an applicant fails to deliver some or all of the scheme requirements in 2023, recoupment of some or all of the monies already paid will apply.
The minister urged farmers to be mindful of this when cutting silage and/or hay in 2023 on the areas declared in the 2023 scheme.
Applicants will have an opportunity to amend the area declared for the 2023 Fodder Support Scheme when the scheme’s online system reopens in the period of May/June 2023.
Minister McConalogue also encouraged any participants in the 2022 Fodder Support Scheme that received correspondence from the department to respond promptly to ensure no further delay to their payments.