The Irish Natura and Hill Farmers Association (INHFA) pushed Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue and his Department officials at Tuesday’s Farmers' Charter meeting to address a number of ongoing issues relating to the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES).

INHFA president Vincent Roddy outlined “how commonage farmers in ACRES co-operation are still awaiting confirmation on their habitat scores, while many farmers are also seeking the go-ahead to carry out actions applied for last autumn under the non-productive investments (NPIs)”.

Roddy highlighted that a number of farmers are still awaiting balancing payments and added that “it is vital that all farmers are paid in the coming weeks”.

Roddy was also very critical of the suggestion that farmers who were overpaid last spring when the interim payment was made may have the balance recovered through upcoming schemes, most notably the Areas of Natural Constraint (ANC) and Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS).

Delay to ANC

The farm leader pointed to the impact the delay in the issuing of ANC payments had on farmers last year and was adamant that “we cannot accept a situation where farmers could see some or all of their ANC payment wiped because the Department have been unable to deliver the accurate ACRES payments to farmers within the expected timeframes”.

Roddy explained that the ANC payment is the first major payment for many farmers each autumn and it is “critical in terms of cashflow and eagerly anticipated” and that “we must ensure that farmers are not left in a vulnerable financial position that could lead to higher stress levels”.

The proposal outlined by the Minister at the charter meeting to accommodate those farmers who are reliant on the ANC and BISS payments at an individual level is “a step in the right direction, however we need to see the detail around this which is why the upcoming meeting on ACRES with Department personnel is now critical and one we anticipate will happen in the coming week”.