Brendan Griffin
Question:277. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his plans to increase payments to €300 per cow for beef farmers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27600/20]
View answerWednesday, 30 September 2020
Questions (277)
Written answers
Examination of supports for all relevant sectors in the context of the next CAP is currently underway in my Department. In the current RDP, the core support for the beef sector is the €300 Million Beef Data and Genomics Programme. It is envisaged that the gains in the genetic merit of the national herd made for the sector in through the programme will be built on in the next RDP.
In addition to this support, over the last two years, over €200 million of additional supports was made available specifically to the beef sector, not including a €23 million top up to ANCs in 2019 which primarily benefited beef farmers.
The recent €50 million Beef Finishers Payment (BFP) is targeted towards beef finishers in recognition of the fact that they have borne the most immediate and severe economic impact arising from the market disturbance arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Supporting finishers will have a positive impact on suckling and store buying enterprises, as it will help to maintain the market into which these operators sell, primarily in the autumn.
The 2020 Beef Environmental Efficiency Programme - Sucklers (BEEP-S), the successor of the BEEP 2019 pilot programme, is targeted specifically at suckler farmers and aims to enhance the operational, economic and environmental efficiency of suckler enterprises.
Last year, the Beef Exceptional Aid Measure (2019), co-funded by the EU and Irish exchequer, and with an available budget of €100 million, was designed to provide temporary exceptional adjustment aid to farmers in the beef sector for both finished animals and suckler cows.
I am satisfied that the range of supports currently made available are appropriate to support the beef sector.