Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue has announced that the low emission slurry spreading (LESS) scheme, and the dairy equipment capital investment scheme (DES) will be the next schemes to open to applications under the new Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS).

Both are open for applications from today (Monday, May 8). They are the fifth and sixth schemes to open under the new TAMS.

Commenting on these schemes, Minister McConalogue said: “I’m very pleased to launch these two very important elements of the TAMS schemes.

“The low emission slurry scheme highlights our continued support to assist farmers undertake the necessary investment to upgrade their slurry spreading equipment to meet their environmental commitments.

“[LESS] was taken up hugely by farmers under the previous TAMS and I expect significant interest now also,” the minister added.

The standalone investment ceiling of €40,000 is retained, and the the grant aid rate has been increased from 40% to 60%, in order to “incentivise this important technology”, the minister explained.

On the DES, the minister said: “The launch of the Dairy Equipment Scheme will also encourage dairy farmers, especially young farmers and new entrants to dairying, with support in meeting capital costs in meeting modern herd management, energy saving, and animal welfare standards required to compete in the sector.

“It is also heavily focussed on environmental investments required on dairy farms. We’ve also increased the grant limit to €90,000 for eligible farmers.”

According to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the practice of low emission slurry spreading is an important environmentally sustainable technology that will facilitate Ireland meeting its environmental commitments through reductions in ammonia and other reactive nitrogen emissions from soil.

For the LESS, the maximum amount of investment eligible for grant-aid under the scheme is €40,000 per holding.

However, in the case of a joint application by two or more eligible partners under a registered farm partnership, the maximum eligible investment ceilings referred to above shall be increased to €60,000.

The investment ceiling under this scheme is not subject to the overall TAMS 3 investment ceiling of €90,000 per holding.

The list of items that are eligible to receive funding under the LESS are as follows:

  • Mobile Slurry Tank with relevant attachments;
  • Retrofit of relevant attachments to existing tanker;
  • Umbilical system retrofit of existing umbilical system;
  • Hydraulic motor to substitute power take-off (PTO) shaft.

Under the DES, the list of eligible investments are as follows:

  • Milk storage and cooling;
  • Water heating;
  • Backup PTO generator;
  • Milk recording equipment;
  • Milking machine;
  • Auto washer for milking machine.

For this scheme, grant aid will be paid at a rate of 40%, up to a maximum of €90,000.

For milking machines, grant aid will only be paid on one robotic milking machine or 10 milking machine units in a herringbone style parlour per holding.

Farmers that received grant aid for a robotic milking machine in the last TAMS scheme (under the 2014 to 2020 Common Agricultural Policy) cannot receive support for this item.

The six TAMS schemes that have been opened so far are as follows:

  • Animal Welfare and nutrient storage scheme (AWNSS):
  • Organic farming capital investment scheme (OCIS);
  • Solar capital investment scheme (SCIS);
  • Dairy equipment capital investment scheme (DES);
  • Low emissions slurry scheme (LESS);
  • Pig and poultry capital investment scheme (PPIS).

The four schemes that are yet to be opened, and that are expected be opened on a phased basis by June 16, are:

  • Young farmer capital investment scheme (YFCIS);
  • Women farmer capital investment scheme (WFCIS);
  • Farm safety capital investment scheme (FSCIS);
  • Tillage capital investment scheme (TCIS).
DAIRY LESS TAMS