FINE Gael TD Joe Carey has confirmed that more than €2.4million is being paid to Clare beef and suckler farmers under the Beef Data and Genomics Programmes (BDGP).
“These payments are in addition to the Beef Environmental Efficiency Programme for Sucklers (BEEP-S) and Dairy Beef scheme payments that issued last week and further payments will continue to issue as more farmers verify their compliance with the 2022 BDGP requirements,” Deputy Carey explained.
“€2,295,230 is being paid to 1,156 Clare farmers under the first phase of the BDGP with a further €166,678 going to 104 farmers in the county from the second phase of the programme.
“This meant that Clare farmers received the second highest payment rate in the country with only Galway receiving a higher total payment of over €2.9million.
“BDGP payments have brought about reductions in Ireland’s greenhouse gas emissions while also introducing genetic technology into the national herd. It has also been critical income support for beef and suckler farmers since its inception.
Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue said that payments valued at more than €28 million are issuing over the coming days to over 14,500 participants across the two BDGP programmes.This is the final year for both schemes as they will be replaced by the Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP) in 2023.
“This will build on the success of the BDGP and will pay participants €150/cow on the first ten animals compared to €90/cow on the first ten in the outgoing BDGP,” the Minister explained.
He also reiterated that the payments are in addition to the over €42 million that issued last week under the 2022 BEEP-S and Dairy Beef schemes to over 30,000 participants.
