The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA) has described a new government scheme paying suckler farmers €50/calf as “Mickey Mouse money”.
The National Beef Welfare Scheme (NBWS), announced last evening (Wednesday, August 2) by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue, is a support measure designed to enhance animal health and husbandry on suckler farms.
Farmers will be paid €35/calf, up to a maximum of 40 calves, for meal feeding. This means they can earn up to €1,400 for this action.
Farmers will also be paid up to €300 to test a maximum of 20 animals in their herd for infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (IBR).
Both actions are mandatory for farmers who wish to participate in the scheme. Farmers who take part in the NBWS as well as the Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP), will earn €200/cow-calf pair.
ICSA
Giving his initial reaction to the new scheme, ICSA president Dermot Kelleher told Agriland: “€1,700 is not going to do a lot for anybody, but we appreciate every help.
“Really and truly, when it comes down to it, it’s kind of Mickey Mouse money really. It’s not a great hill of beans either way.
“Everything is a help, but it’s not going to change the world,” he said.
The ICSA president said the €35/calf payment to feed meal is “a positive” as it is rewarding what is already being done by many suckler farmers around the country.
Kelleher said that the IBR testing element could be “helpful” to improve the overall health status of some herds.
However, he believes the payment of up to €300 for the action will mainly be “money for the vets and not the farmers” due to the costs involved in carrying out the IBR testing.
Kelleher said that the scheme “took a long time to get” for suckler farmers.
“In reality, most suckler farmers are in areas that are high in biodiversity, they’re extensive, they’re not putting out a lot of fertiliser.
“It’s probably the most environmentally friendly part of the Irish agriculture scene, but we seem to be the poor relations always when it comes down to any help or any support,” he said.