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Fianna Fáil TD Charlie McConalogue has called for the conditions attached to the Beef Emergency Measures Scheme (BEAM) to be relaxed.
“The requirement on participating farmers to reduce stocking rates by 5% between July 2020 and June 2021 is unnecessary and should have been resisted by the Government at European level,” McConalogue said.
“The proposed implementation of this requirement as part of the scheme takes no account of a farmer's existing circumstances or stocking rate and is entirely arbitrary.”
McConalogue has called on the Minister for Agriculture to exempt herds with less than 20 cows from having to reduce numbers.
He also pointed out that if farmers have to reduce numbers this could impact the cattle trade next year when the restriction is in place, with fewer farmers wanting to take on more stock.
The €100m beef fund was announced earlier this year to help compensate farmers who suffered financial losses due to Brexit uncertainty.
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