New EU Animal Welfare rules setting down new standards in relation to the housing of sows came into force on 1 January 2013. A significant number of producers have undertaken the necessary work required in order to upgrade their facilities in order to comply with the new rules.
My Department is aware of the scale of the challenge facing pig farmers in respect of the new requirements. To this end, the Department introduced a Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) for Sow Welfare in June 2010. Grant-aid is available at a rate of 40% to eligible producers with a maximum investment ceiling of €300,000, i.e. a maximum grant of €120,000. A total of €16 million has been allocated to this scheme under the Rural Development Programme. It follows two earlier schemes in 2005 and 2007 and payments of €6.2 million have already been made to pig producers.
The scheme has been enhanced and extended on a number of occasions including provision being made to allow producers make multiple applications in instances where the producer has more than one sow house. While the majority of producers have worked extremely hard to achieve compliance, my Department is aware that a small number of producers have experienced difficulties with planning permission. With this in mind, I recently announced a further extension in the deadline for grant applications until 2 April. The final date for completion of work and the lodgment of payment claims is 30 September 2013.
I and my Department are in regular contact with farm bodies, various national banks and the Banking Federation concerning the availability of credit to farmers, including those in the pig sector, who are under financial pressure. The banks provide information online, via the Irish Banking Federation, as to the type of information that they require when making a decision on a loan request in the agriculture sector. However, farmers who are not satisfied with the service provided by their banks can ask for an internal review by the relevant bank and if they are still not satisfied can apply to the Credit Review Office to have their case reviewed. Despite concerns, a relatively small number of cases from the Agri-Food sector have come before the Credit Review Office.
