Macra na Feirme recently presented the Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed with a submission for an amendment to be made to the Rural Development Programme to include grazing infrastructure under TAMS.
Speaking at the meeting, Macra na Feirme national president Seán Finan said: “Young farmers recognise the potential that grass has to drive profitability at farm level. Improvements in soil fertility are required but, equally, investment is required in the infrastructure such as roadways and water infrastructure which drive the utilisation of grass.”
Initiatives such as Origin Green and Food Wise 2025 promote Ireland’s sustainability credentials. Our grass-based system is our unique selling point. However, there is huge potential for improvement in grass utilisation on farms through further investment. In some sectors, sufficient profitability levels do not exist to drive investment without grant aid.
Finan continued: “Our submission fits into the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s ‘Year of Sustainable Grassland’ initiative. A scheme which incentivises investment in grazing infrastructure is required. Implementation of this proposal will result in investment at farm level which will aid the strategic development of the industry. Not only would there be an economic return on investment but also an environmental and sustainability return.”
What is meant by grazing infrastructure? It refers to new farm roadways and grazing platform water infrastructure including water piping and troughs with the option to include underpasses to be further investigated.
Finan stated: “The need for a scheme of this nature has been verified by a recent Macra na Feirme survey of young farmers where 89% of respondents want a grazing infrastructure scheme included under TAMS.”
The submission proposes that all young farmers under 40 years of age would be eligible for a 60% grant aid with a maximum investment ceiling of €80,000. Farmers in partnership arrangements would be eligible for the scheme. That planning permission would not be required for the road and water infrastructure. The cost of establishing the water source, ie well drilling, would not be included in the scheme.
Water infrastructure would include the pipe and trough infrastructure from the source to the grazing platform. A farm plan which outlines the new farm road network, water pipe and troughs network to be installed would have to be completed and submitted with the application for the grant.
This proposal would:
Improve efficiency and profitability at farm level thus reducing emissions and contributing to the climate change agenda.Reduce production costs due to increases in grass utilisation and extension of the grazing season as a result of better access to the grazing platform via the roadway infrastructure.Result in less damage to soils on heavy soil farms at entrances to paddocks/fields due to multiple access points onto a farm roadway. This would also result in less nitrogen leaking and less release of greenhouse gases.Encourages a move away from set stocking to more paddock/rotational grazing systems.Increase utilisation of slurry due to better access to the whole farm.Help to achieve increased grass utilisation targets in Food Wise 2025.Result in significant levels of employment and economic activity in rural areas.Financial returns
Teagasc Beef 2016 and dairy manuals clearly articulate the financial returns and increase in profitability for farmers on investment in grazing infrastructure. Every extra tonne of grass dry matter utilised is worth an additional €160 in farm profit. Every extra day of grazing is worth €2.70 per cow. Increasing the liveweight gain through improved utilisation of grass by +0.1kg/day will result in an increase in profitability of €78/ha.
The Macra na Feirme proposal contains costings based on Teagasc figures in the Dairy Manual 2016 (€25/metre) for new farm roadways and costings for water infrastructure including water piping and troughs. The areas currently prioritised for capital investment under TAMS II are multi-faceted including enabling growth and expansion, environmental and climate change issues, supporting increased efficiency of holdings and improved animal health and welfare. The construction of farm roadways and installation of water infrastructure meets all of the themes above. An improvement in grazing infrastructure will help to extend the grazing season on all farms but particularly on farms with more marginal land, allowing for more grass to be utilised.
Finan concluded: “Macra na Feirme continues to provide training opportunities on grass measuring/utilisation to young farmers through the Young Farmer Skillnet programme. Our grazing infrastructure submission warrants serious consideration as an investment in Ireland’s climate-change mitigation strategy and agricultural output. Macra na Feirme looks forward to discussing the proposal further with all stakeholders.”
Macra na Feirme recently presented the Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed with a submission for an amendment to be made to the Rural Development Programme to include grazing infrastructure under TAMS.
Speaking at the meeting, Macra na Feirme national president Seán Finan said: “Young farmers recognise the potential that grass has to drive profitability at farm level. Improvements in soil fertility are required but, equally, investment is required in the infrastructure such as roadways and water infrastructure which drive the utilisation of grass.”
Initiatives such as Origin Green and Food Wise 2025 promote Ireland’s sustainability credentials. Our grass-based system is our unique selling point. However, there is huge potential for improvement in grass utilisation on farms through further investment. In some sectors, sufficient profitability levels do not exist to drive investment without grant aid.
Finan continued: “Our submission fits into the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s ‘Year of Sustainable Grassland’ initiative. A scheme which incentivises investment in grazing infrastructure is required. Implementation of this proposal will result in investment at farm level which will aid the strategic development of the industry. Not only would there be an economic return on investment but also an environmental and sustainability return.”
What is meant by grazing infrastructure? It refers to new farm roadways and grazing platform water infrastructure including water piping and troughs with the option to include underpasses to be further investigated.
Finan stated: “The need for a scheme of this nature has been verified by a recent Macra na Feirme survey of young farmers where 89% of respondents want a grazing infrastructure scheme included under TAMS.”
The submission proposes that all young farmers under 40 years of age would be eligible for a 60% grant aid with a maximum investment ceiling of €80,000. Farmers in partnership arrangements would be eligible for the scheme. That planning permission would not be required for the road and water infrastructure. The cost of establishing the water source, ie well drilling, would not be included in the scheme.
Water infrastructure would include the pipe and trough infrastructure from the source to the grazing platform. A farm plan which outlines the new farm road network, water pipe and troughs network to be installed would have to be completed and submitted with the application for the grant.
This proposal would:
Improve efficiency and profitability at farm level thus reducing emissions and contributing to the climate change agenda.Reduce production costs due to increases in grass utilisation and extension of the grazing season as a result of better access to the grazing platform via the roadway infrastructure.Result in less damage to soils on heavy soil farms at entrances to paddocks/fields due to multiple access points onto a farm roadway. This would also result in less nitrogen leaking and less release of greenhouse gases.Encourages a move away from set stocking to more paddock/rotational grazing systems.Increase utilisation of slurry due to better access to the whole farm.Help to achieve increased grass utilisation targets in Food Wise 2025.Result in significant levels of employment and economic activity in rural areas.Financial returns
Teagasc Beef 2016 and dairy manuals clearly articulate the financial returns and increase in profitability for farmers on investment in grazing infrastructure. Every extra tonne of grass dry matter utilised is worth an additional €160 in farm profit. Every extra day of grazing is worth €2.70 per cow. Increasing the liveweight gain through improved utilisation of grass by +0.1kg/day will result in an increase in profitability of €78/ha.
The Macra na Feirme proposal contains costings based on Teagasc figures in the Dairy Manual 2016 (€25/metre) for new farm roadways and costings for water infrastructure including water piping and troughs. The areas currently prioritised for capital investment under TAMS II are multi-faceted including enabling growth and expansion, environmental and climate change issues, supporting increased efficiency of holdings and improved animal health and welfare. The construction of farm roadways and installation of water infrastructure meets all of the themes above. An improvement in grazing infrastructure will help to extend the grazing season on all farms but particularly on farms with more marginal land, allowing for more grass to be utilised.
Finan concluded: “Macra na Feirme continues to provide training opportunities on grass measuring/utilisation to young farmers through the Young Farmer Skillnet programme. Our grazing infrastructure submission warrants serious consideration as an investment in Ireland’s climate-change mitigation strategy and agricultural output. Macra na Feirme looks forward to discussing the proposal further with all stakeholders.”
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