The number of farmers attending Business Discussion Group (BDG) meetings across NI has dropped significantly, figures obtained from DAERA confirm. In the six months from April to September 2018, average attendance at meetings was 51%, which is down from 72% during the same period last year.

Payments to farmers for attending meetings during the first two years of the scheme came to an end in April 2018. Annual payments of up to £490 were initially available to BDG participants for attending all eight events each year.

However, a DAERA spokesperson said that other factors have influenced the reduced turnout at meetings since April, such as the weather – which resulted in increased farm workloads due to the late spring, dry summer and mild autumn.

“During October there are indications of an improving trend of attendance at BDGs training events,” the spokesperson said.

The BDG scheme is funded with £28m from Rural Development Programme and at the start of the third year of the scheme 3,049 farmers were enrolled in 153 sector-specific discussion groups.

In the six months up to September 2018, there were 492 BDG meetings held across NI, which is down from 578 during the same period in 2017. On enquiry, the DAERA spokesperson said that advisers postponed BDG events in response to increased workloads on farms.

This means some groups can expect more frequent meetings over the winter, with each BDG required to have eight events each year. Participants are required to attend at least four of these meetings to remain part of the scheme.

Another requirement in BDG agreements is for participants to complete physical and financial benchmarking of their farm business. According to the DAERA spokesperson, 2,900 BDG participants have conducted benchmarking since joining the scheme.

This appears to be well up from the end of March 2018, when DAERA’s annual report stated that 1,279 enterprises had been benchmarked as part of the BDG programme.

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