The Horticulture Crisis Fund is now open for applications, the Department of Agriculture has announced.

This comes following the recent announcement by Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue and Minister of State Pippa Hackett regarding the distribution of the funds allocated under the EU agricultural reserve.

The fund, according to the Department, is a support measure that will be provided in the form of a once-off payment to brown mushroom, heated strawberry, field vegetable, field salad crop, apple, vertical farmed greens and glasshouse high-wire crop growers that are most affected by the continued high level of input costs.

Short-term security

The support package will help to ensure the short-term security and thus the long-term viability of growers in these sub-sectors.

Payments will be made in January 2024 and eligible applicants will be paid based on the number of hectares in production and, in the case of mushrooms, growers will be paid on the weight (kg) of mushrooms sold.

The Department also said that caps on payments per grower will be applied should the scheme be oversubscribed.

Completed application forms and supporting documentation must be submitted by midnight Wednesday 1 November.