Farmers should not be charged to attend KT meetings or hear guest speakers, the Department of Agriculture recently warned in an official circular to group facilitators.

It is understood that some individual facilitators had asked farmers to pay up to €10/head to listen to guest speakers even though speaker costs should be paid out of the facilitator’s own pocket.

The Department warned facilitators that their payment of €500 per group participant includes a provision for all meeting costs such as meeting rooms, handouts and guest speaker charges such as the vet hosting the group animal health meeting and other experts.

It added: “Individual farmers in the Knowledge Transfer group are not liable for any meeting costs.”

Quotes from vets for the group animal health talk range from nothing to €250 per meeting nationally.

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