Farmers still waiting for Knowledge Transfer money

Farmers across Ireland are still waiting to receive their Knowledge Transfer (KT) payments, worth an estimated €20m in year one of the scheme.

The most recent figures from the Department of Agriculture indicate that 13,740 out of the 19,000 farmers in the scheme have been paid.

Julian & Gleeson Agricultural Consultancy in Limerick has called the delay in payments a “disaster”.

Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, a spokesperson said: “There are still around 20% of our farmers left to be paid.”

“It’s a disaster because there are some lads in the groups paid and some that aren’t and if you’re sending out cheques to some lads, the others are annoyed that they’re not getting paid.”

Despite the issues that have dogged the scheme, the Limerick-based advisers say that there are still farmers who want to sign up.

“There were a lot of farmers that dropped out, but there are actually farmers still coming to us who want to join who would really benefit from the scheme, but the Department won’t let new applicants in.”

“There’s probably money unspent if there were dropouts and the Department should let new farmers sign up.”

Singled out for inspection

A number of farmers in the west of the country are also still awaiting payment.

Brian Carroll of Carroll Consultancy in Swinford, Co Mayo, confirmed that 20% of the farmers in their KT groups were still waiting to be paid.

Although not confirmed by the Department, Carroll believes that farmers who have yet to be paid may have been singled out for an inspection or not met all the requirements of the scheme, such as attending five approved events.

Advisers awaiting payment

The delay in payments is also an issue for agricultural advisers, who have to wait on all the farmers in their groups being paid before they can receive payment from the Department.

Earlier this year, Teagasc published its accounts for 2016, which showed a 32% rise in income, derived mainly from knowledge transfer payments.

Currently, the Department pays €1,250 for participation in the KT scheme, with the farmer receiving €750 and the adviser receiving €500.

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