Red diesel prices ease back in NIQuotes from local fuel suppliers for red diesel have eased back by around 2p/litre in recent days.
A price survey conducted by the Irish Farmers Journal on Wednesday found quotes for 2,250 litres of red diesel ranged from 69-70p/litre plus VAT.
Work on NI sheep scheme ‘paused’The development of a specific support scheme for the NI sheep sector has been put on hold, Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has confirmed.
Group forum
“Work on sheep-focused co-design, via the established Agricultural Policy Stakeholder Group forum, has been paused at present due to competing priorities,” he said.
In response to a written question from Sinn Féin MLA Declan McAleer, Minister Muir said DAERA officials “will move forward with this work” when staff resources become available.
Database needed for grass-fed beef label
The roll out of a label for grass-fed beef requires a verification system to be put in place in NI, Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has said.
A long running application for Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status for Irish grass-fed beef was approved by the European Commission in late 2023.
However, Minister Muir said “the major outstanding issue” is that a database needs to be developed to verify the status of the beef labelled with the PGI.
In response to a written question from Sinn Féin MLA Declan McAleer, the minister said he was not aware that any progress had been made to resolve the issue.
“Geographical Indications are industry-led, and it is therefore up to industry to fund any such software development in line with its desire for NI’s inclusion in the PGI,” he said.
AgriSearch conference for high output dairyLocal research body, AgriSearch is to host a dairy conference aimed at high output herds on Tuesday 15 April at the Armagh City Hotel.
The aim of the event is to explore key strategies to enhance herd performance, health and profitability, with speakers including local dairy farmers, Conor Casey and Clare Beckett.
There will also be contributions from dairy vet, Nial O’Boyle and Peter Bone, a specialist in mineral supplementation.
The conference starts at 10am and closes at 3.40pm and is open to anyone. Register via the AgriSearch website (www.agrisearch.org).
English scheme closure is ‘shattering blow’The abrupt closure of the main farming scheme in England has been described by the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) as “a shattering blow”.
Last week, the UK government announced it was no longer accepting applications for the new Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) due to budget availability.
The SFI is an agri environment scheme which is being funded by the phase out of the Basic Payment Scheme in England.
“They say the money is spent, but because Defra refuses to be transparent we don’t know where it’s been spent, or whether it’s all been spent within this year,” said NFU president Tom Bradshaw.
“The awful dilemma now faced by many farmers is whether to turn their backs on environmental work and just farm as hard as they can to survive.
This is a loss to both farming and the environment,” he added.
Red diesel prices ease back in NIQuotes from local fuel suppliers for red diesel have eased back by around 2p/litre in recent days.
A price survey conducted by the Irish Farmers Journal on Wednesday found quotes for 2,250 litres of red diesel ranged from 69-70p/litre plus VAT.
Work on NI sheep scheme ‘paused’The development of a specific support scheme for the NI sheep sector has been put on hold, Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has confirmed.
Group forum
“Work on sheep-focused co-design, via the established Agricultural Policy Stakeholder Group forum, has been paused at present due to competing priorities,” he said.
In response to a written question from Sinn Féin MLA Declan McAleer, Minister Muir said DAERA officials “will move forward with this work” when staff resources become available.
Database needed for grass-fed beef label
The roll out of a label for grass-fed beef requires a verification system to be put in place in NI, Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir has said.
A long running application for Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status for Irish grass-fed beef was approved by the European Commission in late 2023.
However, Minister Muir said “the major outstanding issue” is that a database needs to be developed to verify the status of the beef labelled with the PGI.
In response to a written question from Sinn Féin MLA Declan McAleer, the minister said he was not aware that any progress had been made to resolve the issue.
“Geographical Indications are industry-led, and it is therefore up to industry to fund any such software development in line with its desire for NI’s inclusion in the PGI,” he said.
AgriSearch conference for high output dairy
Local research body, AgriSearch is to host a dairy conference aimed at high output herds on Tuesday 15 April at the Armagh City Hotel.
The aim of the event is to explore key strategies to enhance herd performance, health and profitability, with speakers including local dairy farmers, Conor Casey and Clare Beckett.
There will also be contributions from dairy vet, Nial O’Boyle and Peter Bone, a specialist in mineral supplementation.
The conference starts at 10am and closes at 3.40pm and is open to anyone. Register via the AgriSearch website (www.agrisearch.org).
English scheme closure is ‘shattering blow’The abrupt closure of the main farming scheme in England has been described by the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) as “a shattering blow”.
Last week, the UK government announced it was no longer accepting applications for the new Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) due to budget availability.
The SFI is an agri environment scheme which is being funded by the phase out of the Basic Payment Scheme in England.
“They say the money is spent, but because Defra refuses to be transparent we don’t know where it’s been spent, or whether it’s all been spent within this year,” said NFU president Tom Bradshaw.
“The awful dilemma now faced by many farmers is whether to turn their backs on environmental work and just farm as hard as they can to survive.
This is a loss to both farming and the environment,” he added.
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