Land eligibility rules to be eased

The Department of Agriculture is changing the focus of land eligibility rules in order to make it easier for farmers to comply and claim full payments under the new CAP schemes. To find out how the criteria is changing to accommodate farmers, click here.

Weaker supply could turn dairy markets

Pat O'Keeffe writes that early signs of a slowdown in milk supply growth in the United States and Europe could lead to a recovery in milk prices later this year. To find out by how much there was a slight increase in milk supply in March and what the factors were that impacted this slow growth, click here.

Tesco must face the reality of lower margins

Tesco posted losses of almost €9 billion (£6.4 billion) last year, hopefully leading to the need to cut margins rather than cut prices on suppliers. To find out how the company was driven deep into the red and what this might mean for farmers and suppliers of Irish food products click here.

Farmer tells of a close call with a silent killer

Joe Kinsella, a suckler and sheep farmer from Co Wicklow, recently spent five days in hospital after being overcome by toxic fumes from agitated slurry, writes Shane Murphy. To read about how the lack of wind was a culprit in the near-tragedy and exactly how events unfolded that morning in March, click here.

Commonage farmers have more to lose when it comes to GLAS

Peter Young writes that less than half of the commonage farmers anticipated to go into GLAS might apply this year due to a number of reasons. These include the delay by the Department in setting out the process for common management plans and how individual advisers were to be appointed. To read more on this reason and others click here.