Farmers have been warned that royalties must be paid on farm-saved seed or they face prosecution and fines of up to €5,000.

Some 20 farmers and processors have been prosecuted in the past number of years.

Farm-saved seed is legally defined as seed planted on a farmer’s own holding using material harvested from that holding. Royalties must be paid on all farm-saved seed used by a grower at the rate of 50% of the price of certified seed, regardless of whether the seed has been processed by a processor or not.

Catherine Keena, Teagasc’s countryside management specialist, told the Irish Farmers Journal that the popularity of wild bird cover had led to an increase in enquiries about farm-saved seed.