Members of the IFA have been occupying the Department of Agriculture headquarters in Kildare Street since Wednesday afternoon and slept there on Wednesday and Thursday night.

It is believed IFA members will continue the protest outside the building all weekend, with the protests lasting from 7am until 11pm each day. Representatives from different counties will take it in turns to be present.

The protesters are hoping to meet the Minister by Tuesday to negotiate over the terms and conditions of the fund.

It is estimated that farmers lost €4.1m during the harvest of 2016.

Farmers lost 25% to 50% of their total grain harvest and some fields were a complete write-off. The farmers also lost up to 50% of their straw. In all, some 245 farmers lost more than 21,000t of grain and the equivalent of 82,500 round bales of straw.

Why are they protesting?

The weather at the back end of last year brought a disastrous harvest, which led to a once-off tillage crisis fund being set up by the Department of Agriculture to relieve farmers who lost over 30% of their crop.

Though the details of the scheme was not released, it was rumoured the 250 farmers affected would get a payment subject to a maximum of €15,000. This funding was approved on Tuesday.

However, when media reports claimed this payment cap was in fact €5,000, the IFA called a meeting of the grain committee and decided they had no other option than to occupy the Department headquarters in protest.

Cork IFA representatives in the office of Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed in Macroom requesting an urgent meeting between the IFA and the minister with no pre-conditions on the table for the tillage crisis fund. Donal O’ Leary

So far, five members of the IFA have camped out in the building for the last two nights. No other member of the IFA has been granted permission to enter the building, but they continue to protest outside.

The Irish Farmers Journal understands a communication line has been set up between Minister Creed and IFA president Joe Healy.

The secretary general of the Department had been in talks with IFA officials early Thursday morning and again Thursday afternoon.

IFA president Joe Healy and Department of Agriculture secretary general Aidan O'Driscoll outside Agriculture House.

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IFA tillage protest: full coverage