Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 June 2023
479. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide progress and a timeline for the announcement and implementation of the replacement scheme for BEEP; if measures are being taken to ensure the new scheme adequately addresses the concerns raised by farmers to sustain the suckler sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29368/23]
View answerThe importance of beef production enterprises to the overall agri-food sector and to a balanced regional economy is well understood by the Government. My Department has already rolled out two schemes this year that will provide significant benefits to the beef sector.
The Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP), which will run from 2023 to 2027, is designed to support farmers in improving the environmental sustainability and genetic merit of the suckler herd. The scheme is a successor to the Beef Data and Genomics Programme (BDGP) but also incorporates the weighing measure from the Beef Environmental Efficiency Programme -Suckler (BEEP-S) and aims to build on the gains achieved through the BDGP and the BEEP-S.
Additionally, last March, I launched the National Dairy Beef Welfare Scheme (NDBWS) to facilitate the integration of the dairy and beef sectors by supporting farmers rearing progeny from the dairy herd for beef production.
The SCEP has attracted some 20,000 applications while over 14,000 farmers have applied to join the NDBWS. The high level of uptake for both schemes signifies that farmers see the benefits of those schemes in sustaining the sector.
My officials are currently working on refining the operational aspects of a further one-year, Brexit Adjustment Reserve (BAR) funded scheme to be known as the National Beef Welfare Scheme (NBWS). The policy objective of the NBWS is to further increase economic efficiency and enhance animal health and husbandry on suckler farms.
While the terms and conditions of the scheme remain to be finalised, it is expected that applications will open in late July / early August 2023 and close in mid-September 2023, with payments commencing in December 2023. Scheme details and requirements will be announced in due course.
Through these supports and other interventions, I am continuing to strongly support Irish beef production and sustain the farmers whose livelihoods depend on it.
