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There are always requests at this stage of the year regarding rules for temporary grazing arrangements.
These have already started to take place, with some farmers who previously purchased store lambs making enquiries due to tighter margins of store lamb finishing systems in 2016, while other farmers have surplus grass available.
There is also likely to be a repeat of last year’s higher movements to temporary grazing later in the year to graze green cover catch crops.
ANC
It is important to note at the outset that where lands submitted for payment under the Areas of Natural Constraint (ANC) scheme are rented on a short-term basis, it will breach the terms and conditions of the scheme.
These state that, in order to be eligible for payment, the land in question must be available to the applicant for the entire calendar year.
The same rules apply for land farmed on the basis of 11-month conacre agreements, with a requirement to have the land under the control of the applicant for the 11 months.
Temporary grazing agreements will not breach these rules, as control of the land is not relinquished by the ANC applicant. There may be a requirement to notify the Department of Agriculture about these movements and this will be dependent on what type of farm the sheep are moving to.
The following are the main three movement scenarios and Department rules concerning each.
1: Movement to lands with no stock
Where the movement is to a farm with no stock, such as moving sheep to graze green cover on tillage farms for example, sheep can be moved to and from temporary grazing without dispatch documents and without notifying the Department.
2 Movement to farms where livestock are present:
In the case of sheep moving to lands where there is already livestock present, the Department must be notified. As there is no change in ownership, the onus lies on the owner of the sheep to notify the Department. This can be carried out by completing a dispatch document and sending the pink copy to the local district veterinary office (DVO).
Notification of a return from temporary grazing can be completed by sending the white copy of the dispatch document and clearly stating “return from temporary grazing”.
3 Movement to a separate land block on a livestock holding:
A common exception to the above scenario is where sheep are moved to a holding that has livestock, but sheep are being moved to a separate land block to where the ANC applicant’s animals are located. In this case, sheep can be moved to a parcel or outfarm block without notifying the Department, provided there are no livestock on any part of the land sheep are being moved to.
Gaining nitrates credit
While it is not common, some farmers may want to gain nitrates credit for animals leaving their holding.
This is generally only a consideration in highly stocked farms at risk of exceeding the 170kg organic nitrogen limit.
If you wish to gain credit under nitrates regulations for nitrogen and phosphorus produced while sheep are on the temporary holding to reduce your annual production, then the Department must be notified.
Where the movement is recorded with the Department, as in movement type number two above, this will suffice.
Where there is no requirement to notify the local DVO of the movement, then notice of the movement, using Record 4, Temporary Movement Form, must be sent to the DAFM nitrates section in Johnstown Castle, Wexford.
ANC stocking rate contribution
It is also important to note that sheep moving farms by means of temporary grazing arrangements do not contribute to the stocking rate calculation for the applicant/holding they are moving to.
This is because there is no change of ownership and, under the terms and conditions, animals must be owned by the applicant to be deemed eligible.
An exception to this is where animals are moved under a contract-rearing arrangement and the movement has been recorded under the Department’s animal movement and identification system for bovines.
Costs of grazing
There have not been many deals completed to date, but early reports suggest there is not much change in costs reported.
These costs are heavily influenced by factors such as the volume and quality of grass available, how well the land is fenced for sheep and if labour may be provided in helping to oversee the animals.
Typical costs range anywhere from 8c/day to 10c/day for store/finishing lambs to 10c/day to 15c/day for ewes.
It is important to agree at the outset how long the animals can remain for grazing, as this is one of the greatest areas of potential conflict reported.
NSIS rules
It is also important to note that the National Sheep Identification System rules must be followed in terms of tagging.
All animals must be sufficiently tagged on leaving the holding and this must be recorded in your flock register.
It is also advisable to maintain a record of tag numbers of animals moving to temporary grazing.
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