Campaigns & Delivery - Autumn 2014

The Irish Farmers’ AssociationNobody WORKS HARDER for Farmers

Viable Beef, Lamb and Grain prices

Live exports, including to Northern Ireland

Suckler cow support

Beef specifications & Quality Assurance

Livestock Plan for Profit

Sheep Payment

Environmental designations

Flexibility on commonages

Budget 2015 funding for GLAS, TAMs and Das

Prompt Direct payments

New Charter of Rights

CAP implementation, National Reserve and Young Farmers, Greening

Climate change

Retailer responsibility in food chain

Animal health

Banking & credit

Quota soft landing & milk price

Tackling price volatility

Progress in Tax Review

Dairy processing & marketing efficiency

Farm investment support

Tackling input costs

Pigmeat DNA testing

US & Mercosur trade negotiations

Farm safety awareness

Campaigning hard on the issues affecting you

IFA Regional Livestock Farmers’ Meetings

Tackling the Challenges in Beef

Navan – Tuesday, 19th August @ 8.30pm – Ardboyne HotelKilkenny – Monday, 15th September @ 8.00pm – Kilkenny Mart with Teagasc and Kilkenny MartTullamore – Thursday, 18th September @ 8.30pm – Tullamore Court HotelTipperary – Date and location to be confirmed

Further meetings to follow

Speakers including: IFA President Eddie Downey, National Livestock Chairman Henry Burns, Joe Burke, Bord Bia and meat industry representatives.

Contact usCall: 1850 924 852 Email: info@ifa.ie Web: www.ifa.ie Find us on twitter@ifamedia iFarm

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Single Farm Payment

€1.214bn/year secured for SFP. Flat payments and regionalisation prevented. Irish convergence model minimised cuts to productive farmers

New RDP 2014-2020

€580m/year secured in national and EU funding

GLASWorth €5,000 per year for up to 50,000 farmers, with top-ups up of €2,000 possible

TAMs €395m allocated for on-farm investment grants under RDP

Disadvantaged Areas

€1.37bn in funding over 7 years for Areas of Natural Constraint (ANCs)

Discussion GroupsNew BTAP, STAP & Dairy groups’ funding from 2015. Also extended to tillage and other sectors

Sheep paymentSheep Grassland funding retained as part of SFP and increased to €15m – further progress required

Land mobility and farm transfer

Minister Noonan confirms no plan to change 90% agricultural relief in farm tax review

Property Tax Applied to residential properties only and not farmland

BVD Programme

€600,000 secured for BVD support, €120 payable on all calves removed from sucker herds and €75 payable on second and subsequent dairy heifer calves removed

Pork DNAIFA’s DNAcertified programme has boosted volumes of pigmeat purchased and lifted pig meat prices

Horticulture grant €4.2m allocated for horticulture investment in 2014

Retailer regulation

While Competition and Consumer Protection Bill marks first step in regulating retailers, tougher regulation is required, including at EU level

Commonages

Increase in RDP payment for commonage areas; reduction in collective agreement requirement from 80% to 50% - active farmers only - and appeals mechanism

CGT exemptionExemption from Capital Gains Tax for forced disposal of SFP entitlements worth €25m

Beef Forum IFA campaign forced Minister to establish Forum to tackle profitability at farm level

Live exportsIncreased trade to N Africa and negotiated live trade access to GB via Stena; demanding solutions for N. Ireland

Suckler payment €80 per cow under Beef Data and Genomics Scheme

Milk supply agreements

Important improvements secured on price commitments and conditions

Climate changeGovernment recognition that Ireland’s low carbon agriculture must be treated differently on emissions cuts

Nitrates review

Secured a number of positives from the nitrates review including renewal of nitrates derogation and 16% increase in national phosphorous allowance

Soils Directive Plans for Soils Directive dropped by EU Commission

Transport regulation concessions

Load heights and trailer weights amended to be more workable for farmers

Pylons Undergrounding under consideration in Government review

Protein crops €3m coupled payment for protein crops

Biotricity contractSecured contract for Biotricity purchase of 12,000 tonnes of straw this year, and 100,000 tonnes post-2016

Forestry

€105m secured for forestry programme in 2014 budget; Forestry Bill amended to include compensation mechanism for farmers denied felling licenses

Poultry Poultry included under TAMs in the RDP

Contributory pensions

PRSI extended to assisting spouses of farmers from 2014, making it easier to establish entitlement to a contributory pension

Turf cutting compensation

€2,000 upfront and €1,500 thereafter for 15 years, or supply of turf for 15 years or relocation.

Seafood sector €148m secured in EU funding for seafood sector

iFarm With increasing price volatility, IFA market updates on iFarm keep producers up to date on both product prices and input costs

The Irish Farmers’ AssociationNobody WORKS HARDER for Farmers

Delivering results for farmers

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