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Last week, the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) in NI submitted evidence to the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) in London asking it to make a formal request to the European Commission for a derogation with the three-crop rule.
“Due to the exceptional adverse weather over the last year, DAERA has compiled evidence to support a case for a derogation from the three-crop rule in Northern Ireland,” the department said in a statement.
Scotland
Arable farmers in Scotland also faced a challenging autumn and spring, leading the Scottish government to put a case forward seeking exemption for the crop diversification requirement this year.
However, sources indicate that initial submissions for NI and Scotland have not been accepted by the European Commission.
Ireland
This compares to the Republic of Ireland, where Minster for Agriculture Michael Creed has confirmed that the three-crop rule will not apply this year.
“We have political sign-off at European level on that. What’s being worked through now is the detail on that and that will take a little bit longer,” Minister Creed said earlier this week.
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