A DECEMBER payout of nearly €22 million in the ACRES environmental scheme through the month of December, has been welcomed by farming representatives.

Minister for Agriculture, Charlie McConalogue, said that this latest payment would bring the total payout for ACRES 2024 to €172 million.

The Minister said that the €172m payment through the past year would bring the total payout in ACRES to €419 million – with €247 million already having been paid out to farmers in respect of their 2023 scheme participation.

A total of 5,153 ACRES participants shared the advance payment of €21.9 million, averaging out at €4,250 per participant – the other 34,673 farmers in the scheme received their payouts mostly through November.

However, despite the latest December payout in ACRES [Agri Climate Rural Environment Scheme], this still only represents 73% of the farmers in the scheme having received their payments.

The remaining 14,730 farmers awaiting payments have been assured by Minister McConalogue that the processing of payments will be continuing from the end of January ‘25 with pay runs to be made on a fortnightly basis after that.

“The participation of more than 54,000 farmers in a national agri-environmental scheme is a testament to the interest and commitment of Irish farmers in protecting and enhancing our environment in terms of biodiversity, water quality and climate measures,” said Minister McConalogue.

Galway IFA Chair, Stephen Canavan, said that while the latest confirmation of payments was a most welcome one for farmers, there was an urgent need to simplify the scheme and to take the unnecessary complications out of it.

“IFA has been involved in detailed negotiations with the Dept. of Agriculture in a review of the scheme currently being undertaken by the Department.

“The scheme has been bogged down in completely unnecessary bureaucracy, paperwork and marking systems – we are now pinning our hopes of an improvement in these areas in the review.

“The situation with ACRES has been particularly troublesome for those taking part in the Co-operation scheme and the Department really do need to get this sorted out,” said Stephen Canavan.

The Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) is the national agri-environment climate measure under Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan for the period 2023-2027 and is jointly funded by the European Union and the National Exchequer.

Pictured: Minister for Agriculture, Charlie McConalogue