The Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) has called on the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue and his officials to redraft the proposed ‘Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme’ which forms part of the Common Agricultural Policy Strategic Plan (CSP).
The association maintains that it discriminates against suckler farmers.
The CSP outlines a new ‘Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme’, which is designed to build on the Beef Data and Genomics Programme (BDGP) and the Beef Environmental Efficiency Programme (BEEP) to improve sustainability of the suckler herd, through improving “genetic merit”.
The programme will consist of two measures – ‘A’ and ‘B’ – operating on a five-year contract basis. The two measures will run parallel, and a farmer can only participate in one or the other.
Measure A will be for farmers who were in BDGP on June 1, 2021, while measure B will be for farmers who were not in BDGP on that date or at all.
Coupled suckler payment
Spokesperson for the INHFA, Brendan Joyce, outlined how the INHFA had, through the CAP consultative process, sought direct support for the suckler sector through a coupled payment.
He stated: “This was included in our response to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) on both our SWOT [strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats] and needs analysis.
“In subsequent discussions around this, DAFM officials indicated to us that their intention was to support the suckler sector through a welfare type scheme in Pillar II [of the CAP]. Unfortunately, what they have now produced is anything but a welfare scheme,” he added.
Amend the proposed scheme
The INHFA is adamant that it is now time for the agriculture minister to intervene to have the make-up and title of this scheme – Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme – altered to reflect what was agreed through the consultation process.
This agreement was a welfare programme similar to what is currently in place under the Beef Environmental Efficiency Pilot (BEEP) but with higher payments, according to the association.
Joyce stated: “With the consultation process due to close on the [August 27] of this month, it is vital that the redrafting of a new suckler scheme is done in the coming days, to give the sector time to reflect and provide feedback on the make-up of any new scheme.”
“Suckler farmers are understandably annoyed at continued attempts to undermine the sector and scapegoat them on concerns around climate change, with many also pointing to the BEAM [Beef Emergency Aid Measure] programme, that had, at its core, a 5% mandatory reduction requirement.”
When assessing the challenges for the agri-food sector posed by climate change, the INHFA has pointed to an EU Commission report from 2017 titled ‘Grazing for Carbon’.
“This report outlines how extensive grazing systems, as practiced by the majority of our suckler farmers, are in fact sequestering carbon. This is something the minister and his staff need to recognise and reward, rather than deny and penalise,” Joyce added.
The INHFA said that the DAFM needs to immediately “scrap” the current proposal, and provide farmers with a scheme they can buy into.
“The suckler sector is most definitely not the problem when it comes to addressing agriculture’s climate change concerns,” Joyce concluded.