The minster was responding to a parliamentary question from TD Michael Healy-Rae on a private matter related to the €300m Beef Data and Genomics Programme (BDGP).

Creed said that although the re-opening of the scheme will have to be considered "in the context of an assessment of budgetary priorities", it "will not be possible to allocate additional resources to the scheme".

He said the reason for this is that there is "a very large commitment already made to the BDGP in the Rural Development Programme" 2014 to 2020, and there are also "significant budgetary pressures across the agrifood sector".

There have been repeated calls for the BDGP to be re-opened following the revelation that the scheme is running almost 30% behind the initial participation target.

I believe that the scheme will deliver long-term and cumulative positive effects for suckler farmers

With just 24,620 farmers involved in the scheme, the BDGP is running 10,000 participants below the original government target of 35,000, according to replies by Minister Creed to previous parliamentary questions. This means there will be a surplus of around €90m out of the BDGP's €300m budget.

Both the IFA and Fianna Fáil's agriculture spokesperson Charlie McConalogue have called for the scheme to be re-opened, with McConalogue saying the excess money should remain within the suckler sector and the IFA citing the scheme's carbon reducing element.

BDGP

The BDGP is a part of Ireland’s Rural Development Programme and has a fixed budget of €300m over the next six years. The BDGP builds on the large investment in data recording and genomics which have been made in recent years and will continue to drive further developments and improvements in this area.

Creed added that he "firmly believes that the scheme will deliver long-term and cumulative positive effects for both suckler farmers participating in the scheme, and farmers who buy the progeny of suckler cows for further finishing. It is a significant contributor to Ireland’s reputation as a producer of sustainable beef."

Read more

€44m paid to farmers in BDGP

Over 50% still to complete BDGP carbon navigator