The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed, T.D. today announced that payments have commenced under the Beef Data and Genomics Programme.

Minister Creed said “I am particularly pleased that payments have commenced for the third year of this innovative Programme which will bring about reductions in Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions while also introducing genetic technology into the national herd thus improving farm profitability. These payments, worth €37 million, have commenced issuing to 21,000 farmers who have verified their compliance with the 2017 requirements.”

The Minister added “Payments under BDGP II will also commence in the coming days. In recent months my Department has been issuing payments to farmers across a range of schemes including BPS, ANC, Knowledge Transfer, GLAS, and the new Sheep Welfare Scheme.  I am very aware of the importance of these schemes for the farming community, and they provide a significant financial boost for both individual farmers and the wider rural economy.”

BDGP payments will continue to issue on an ongoing basis as more famers verify their compliance with the 2017 scheme requirements. The Minister urged participating farmers “to return all surveys and genotyping samples and/or complete the carbon navigator update as soon as possible to facilitate payment”.

ENDS

Date Released: 14 December 2017