Efforts to protect the Areas of Natural Constraint (ANC) are ramping up with a series of meetings taking place in the coming weeks.
IFA is stepping up its campaign over the coming weeks with a number of regional meetings. The first of the meetings takes place in the Errigal Hotel, Cootehill, Co Cavan, on Thursday 2 February.
This meeting, covering Cavan, Monaghan, Louth and Meath, embraces an area where ANC payments have a significant impact for more than 11,000 farmers and are worth in excess of €20m.
Further IFA meetings will take place in Newport, Co Mayo, on Monday 6 February, a Munster regional meeting in Corrin Mart, Fermoy on 24 February, and in Carlow on 3 March.
IFA president Joe Healy said he wants to see an ANC budget of €250m, and that per-hectare payment rates reflect the handicap under the new bio-physical criteria.
Meanwhile, the INHFA starts its own ANC campaign on Friday 3 February in the Clanree Hotel, Letterkenny, Co Donegal.
Review
By the end of 2017, all European countries must have a review of the ANC in time for the new programme starting in 2018.
The Department of Agriculture is expected to publish draft maps in spring where it will set out its view on what the review should look like. A public consultation process will then be opened. Some 75% of the country is currently classed as being disadvantaged.