Ulster grassland farmer of the year launched

The Ulster Grassland Society has launched the annual grassland farmer of the year competition. In addition to an overall winner, there are five competition categories; dairy, beef/sheep, environmental practice, new entrant and special commendation.

Judging for the competition is scheduled to take place in July. Members interested in entering should contact George Reid before 30 June on 07920037910 or, alternatively, email secretary@ulster grassland.co.uk.

£265m to operate DAERA

Officials from DAERA in front of the Stormont agriculture, environment and rural affairs committee earlier this month provided details on the state of DAERA finances for the 2016/17 year.

In total, the new Department has a resource budget allocation of £215.9m to cover running costs, £116.2m of which are staff costs. There is also another £48.8m of capital allocation for this year, with over £16m being spent on IT and nearly £10m on moving headquarters to Ballykelly. In 2016/17, DAERA’s resource budget is down 0.8%, although its capital allocation is up 3.7%.

Officials also outlined the main sources of DAERA income, which includes £9.4m from the Forest Service, £7.9m generated by the NI Environment Agency and £6.1m from work undertaken for the Food Standards Agency. It also receives £6.3m from AFBI for lease of the AFBI estate, which is still in the ownership of the Department.

Frustration over NIRO consultation delay

The Ulster Farmers’ Union has raised concerns that final decision on the proposed closure of the Northern Ireland Renewable Obligation (NIRO) for small-scale wind projects has not yet been made by the Department of the Economy.

A consultation on the matter closed on 9 May, which followed on from the closure of the NIRO for large-scale wind projects from 1 April 2016.

The UFU is urging the Department of the Economy to publish a response to the consultation before the Assembly’s summer recess from the start of next month.

“If the legislation is not taken forward before then, the delay until the Assembly sits again in September will put further pressure on the small scale renewable sector in Northern Ireland,” said UFU rural enterprise chair Gary Hawkes.