The Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) is calling on the Department of Agriculture to ensure Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP) training is accessible for all farmers.

It comes after Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue announced in-person training events will be held to help suckler farmers meet the requirements more easily.

For farmers to remain in SCEP, they must have the training completed by 15 November.

During his announcement, the Minister acknowledged that the online facility provided to date has not been easily accessible for a significant number of farmers.

IFA national livestock chair Declan Hanrahan is now looking for the dates and venues of these events to be confirmed.

The IFA said farmers need “adequate time to arrange to attend these important events to remain compliant with the scheme requirements”.

Accessibility

Hanrahan has also urged the Department to organise for a number of venues to be available to farmers in all counties and said it will not be “acceptable” to expect farmers to undertake long journeys to attend these events.

“SCEP payments are vital for suckler farmers and it is important the Minister ensures there are no unnecessary obstacles put in the way of farmers in meeting the scheme requirements,” the IFA added.