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NI still waiting on ammonia strategy
Despite working on an ammonia strategy since 2018, and assurances from Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots in February 2022 that it would be published before the Stormont Assembly rises for the pre-election period, that target has been missed.
Speaking in the Assembly chamber last Thursday, Minister Poots outlined his “regret” that the action plan was not produced before the end of the mandate.
“Considerable work has been done, a lot of good progress has been made,” he said. He also told MLAs the support given to encourage the use of low-emission slurry spreading equipment will reduce the amount of ammonia in our atmosphere by around 25%.
Beatty appointed to environment body
The NI non-executive member of the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) has been appointed, with ex DAERA civil servant Malcolm Beatty taking up the role. The OEP was established in England to take up the oversight role of environmental law previously undertaken by the European Commission.
In February 2022 MLAs agreed the powers of the OEP would be extended to NI. Malcolm Beatty had various roles in DAERA, including as head of Forest Service. He retired in 2018.
£200,000 support for shows
Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots has announced a support package of £200,000 for NI’s agricultural shows adversely affected by COVID-19. Under the support scheme, show committees can claim up to £10,000 to cover new, or increased operational costs in 2022. Department officials will provide assistance to show committees in the coming weeks to avail of the support. Minister Poots also announced plans for an independent review of local agricultural shows, aimed at exploring the potential for longer term supports that will help these events continue in future.
Second year of losses for RUAS
The Royal Ulster Agricultural Society (RUAS) held its annual general meeting on 25 March, with the chair of its finance committee, John Martin, confirming a £925,695 loss for the year ending 31 October 2021.
It is the second successive year the RUAS has recorded a major deficit following a £983,959 loss for 2020. In contrast, during the 2019 year, the society returned a net operating profit of £992,534.
COVID-19 restrictions significantly curtailed income with the cancellation of flagship events such as the Winter Fair, or limitations placed on crowds attending the rescheduled Balmoral Show held last September.
Also at the AGM, Christine Adams was elected as the 36th president of the RUAS. Hailing from Macosquin, Adams has been a society member since 1994 and served on the council since 1996. She has previously served as chair of the horticulture and catering committees.
Over £6m paid to farmers under EFS
Payments exceeding £6m have been issued to farmers participating in the Environmental Farming Scheme (EFS).
In total 92% of all EFS wider and higher agreements for 2021 have now been paid, with the remainder to be processed and validated as soon as possible. Claims for the 2022 scheme year can be submitted from 7 April via DAERA online services. Applications for tranche 6 of the higher EFS claim will open on 27 April and close on 13 May. Applications for the wider scheme open later this year.
British milk production to fall
The Agricultural and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) is forecasting that milk production in Britain will again fall in 2022/23.
Projections point to an annual yield of 12.25bn litres for the upcoming production year in Britain, down from 12.34bn (0.8%) on 2021/22 and 12.54bn litres in 2020/21. The forecast comes on the back of a significant decline in monthly milk deliveries since November 2021 as dairy farmers respond to rising input costs.
From November 2021 to March 2022, monthly deliveries are down 3% to 4% year on the same period last year.
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