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The minimum number of meetings that each Business Development Group (BDG) in NI must hold each year has dropped from eight to six. The change is part of a revised format for the fourth year of the BDG initiative, which began at the start of April.
In an email to participating farmers last week, BDG scheme manager Sean McIntyre said that there is an option for groups to request more than six meetings each year. However, he said that there needs to be a “very strong rationale” for extra meetings; “for example, greater than 80% attendance”.
At present, almost 3,000 farmers are enrolled in around 150 sector-specific discussion groups as part of the BDG initiative.
I would strongly recommend that you attend the first meeting of the year, where you can input into the topics to be covered
The revised format aims to give BDG members more input into meetings, with McIntyre stating that there is an option to appoint a chairperson from within groups “to interact with group members and to provide feedback to the adviser”.
It will also be up to group members at the first meeting of the year to agree topics for discussion over the next 12 months.
“I would strongly recommend that you attend the first meeting of the year, where you can input into the topics to be covered,” McIntyre said.
Farmers hosting BDG meetings will be required to carry out financial benchmarking prior to the event, and data for discussion among the group is to be agreed between the host farmer and group adviser beforehand. A payment of £600 can still be claimed by farmers who host BDG events.
McIntyre said that services, such as soil testing and blood profiling, will be made available to all BDG members so that more data is available for group discussion.
A network of “technology demonstration farms”, which are currently being established by CAFRE across NI, will also be available for discussion groups to visit as part of the revised BDG scheme.
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