THE Organic Farming Scheme was relaunched recently and remains open to new applicants until December 8th.
The Organic Farming Scheme is an agri-environment measure under the Department's CAP Strategic Plan. Drystock farmers can qualify for yearly payments of up to €300 per hectare during the conversion period and up to €250 per hectare when they have achieved full organic status. For a 40ha drystock farmer total payment over the five years of the organic farming scheme will be 54% higher than under the previous CAP, the Department said.
Higher payment rates are available for organic horticultural and tillage farmers. In addition, an annual participation payment of €2,000 in the first year of conversion and €1,400/annum thereafter has been introduced to support organic farmers.
The Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Senator Pippa Hackett said the level of interest in organic farming in Ireland is ‘unprecedented’.
‘In the last year alone, the number of organic farms has doubled and there has been significant investment made in market development,’ said Minister Hackett.
‘The momentum of the organic sector is now very strongly underpinned by Government policy and supported by state agencies including Teagasc and Bord Bia, as well as the private advisory services in ACA and the Organic Certification Bodies. This is a great opportunity for many farmers to maximise sustainability and future-proof their business by reducing their input costs. We are determined to deliver on the Climate Action Plan target to reach 10% of land farmed organically by 2030, and key to this is the enhanced budget support for organics of €256 million in our CAP Strategic Plan.’
To illustrate the increased level of supports a payments calculator has been developed for farmers and is available at https://cap-calculators.apps.rhos.agriculture.gov.ie/
