Some 400 farmers in the Beef Data and Genomics Programme (BDGP) received payment between 6 and 13 April, but no other payments have been made since, with 1,000 farmers still unpaid in the scheme for numerous reasons.

These farmers received payment as a result of fulfilling scheme obligations, inspection cases that had been recently finalised and herds that used 2017 as their reference year, according to the Department.

Kevin Brady, a suckler and sheep farmer from Co Cavan, is still waiting on his payment.

“We got an inspection for BDGP at the end of January which initially delayed the payment. The inspector came out and checked that genomic samples were taken, the docility scores that we gave them, and other things like was our carbon navigator completed,” Kevin said.

“He [the inspector] told us that day that everything was perfect and there wouldn’t be a problem with payment.

“We had heard nothing at the end of February so we rang the Department and they told us everything was done from our end and it was just a small technical issue that was holding up payment on their side. They wouldn’t tell us what this issue was.

“We rang them several times over the last few weeks and were continuously told that somebody would ring us back but they never did,” Kevin said. “That is the most frustrating part. When they say they will ring you back and they never do, the buck just keeps getting passed on. I’m just fed up with the whole thing now.”

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