The announcement of the opening of the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) last week has raised debate in many farming households. The good news of the announcement and the short lead-in time for applications is bittersweet.
On one hand, farmers who missed out on joining the scheme the last time it opened in 2015 will very much welcome the news. However, others might apply now without giving the idea the full consideration required and join in fear of missing out.
The closing date for applications is 19 December. Talking to the experts, organic farming is not something you should get into at a whim. It can take years of planning and requires a different set of skills compared to conventional farming.
In his announcement of the opening of the third tranche of the OFS, Minister Andrew Doyle said that the Department are seeking more horticulture, cereal and dairy farmer applicants.
This he said was on the recommendations of an organic strategy group who highlighted “areas that are deemed to be in deficit”. A ranking system will be used in favour of those enterprises with beef and sheep enterprises ranked lowest for inclusion.
Irish Farmers Journal spoke with the organic farming specialist in Teagasc, Dan Clavin, about the scheme and asked him what the main points to note are before applying. Dan’s main piece of advice for farmers thinking of making an application is to make sure you are comfortable with the way of farming.
“Talk to advisors, talk to other organic farmers, remember there is no quick fix in organics, you cannot depend on chemical fertilisers,” he stressed.
Dan also pointed out that once you sign the contract, you are tied into the scheme for a minimum of five years. To leave it might require repayment of monies received unless you can prove force majeure. Dan outlined a number of steps farmers should take who are serious about making an application.
1 Consider
If you can answer yes to some or all of these questions then you should consider switching to organic production.
Crop systems
Can you incorporate a grass/clover break into your rotation? Do you have a source of farmyard manure/slurry on or near your own farm?Can you see yourself farming without relying on pesticides and chemical fertilisers?Animal systems
Is your current stocking rate below two livestock units per hectare? Can your animal housing be modified to incorporate a bedded lying area? Are you participating in GLAS? Some GLAS measures eg Traditional Hay Meadow, Low Input Permanent Pasture and Wild Bird Cover are not eligible for OFS payment. 2 Investigate
Get acquainted with the adjustments required by attending farm walks, talking to other organic farmers and or contacting a local advisor. Familiarise yourself with the organic standards A major factor distinguishing organic farming from other approaches to sustainable farming is the existence of internationally acknowledged standards and certification procedures. These standards have been developed to provide organic producers with consistent, clear rules as to how organic food should be produced. For example, chemical fertilisers cannot be used, but some products such as lime and rock phosphate are allowed. Clover and other legumes supply nitrogen. Routine preventative treatment of healthy animals is not allowed, with a focus on prevention rather than cure.
A two-year conversion period is required before a farm is given organic status.
3 Choose an organic certification body
The Organic Certification Bodies (OCBs) provide an inspection and certification service for all Organic Production Units in Ireland. There are two certification bodies to choose from, the Irish Organic Association (IOA, www.irishorganicassociation.ie) and Organic Trust (www.organictrust.ie).
The OCB sends an information pack on request. The pack is tailored to the producers’ needs and will generally contain information on the application and conversion process, an application form and a guide to the organic standards. Once the application and conversion plan are received and assessed, an initial inspection will be arranged.
4 Complete a QQI course in
organic production
A 25-hour ‘Organic Farming Principles’ course must be completed before acceptance into the OFS. Applicants must complete the course by 1 September 2019.
5 Application to the Organic Farming Scheme
First, complete a conversion plan and submit along with an application form and other requested documentation to an OCB.
Second, obtain an organic licence number from the OCB to become a “registered organic operator”. Third, apply to Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine to join the Organic Farming Scheme.
This requires two separate online applications:
Submit OFS application online. Closing date for applications will be 19 December 2018.Choose organic or in-conversion land parcels on Basic Payment Scheme in 2019 online application. 6 The conversion process
When the initial inspection has been carried out, the application approved and the “in-conversion licence” granted, a period of conversion begins. Normally two years, this period of conversion allows time for the land and producer to adjust to the organic methods. After the required conversion period expires, the inspection body may issue organic status to the farmer (unless conversion period is being extended), which allows the farmer to sell his/her produce as organic.
Payment rates
Table 1 shows payment rates for the different enterprise types. Higher payment rates are available for organic horticultural and tillage farmers. Organic horticulture producers, with horticulture area of one hectare or more, are eligible for payments provided that at least 50% of the area eligible for organic payment is cropped each year.
Organic tillage producers, with tillage area of 6ha or more, are eligible for payments. For all other holdings a minimum of 3ha is required for payments. More information and copies of the Organic Farming Scheme terms and conditions including the criteria for ranking and selection of applicants are available on the Department’s organics page at: http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/farmingsectors/organicfarming/organicsscheme/organicfarmingscheme/.
Farmer focus: Gavin Tully
Organic tillage farmer
Camolin, Co Wexford
Gavin Tully started the conversion process to organics in 2015 when the last tranche opened. The main reason for the conversion was lack of margin from conventional crops.
“When it came to conventional, I tried it all but I was always depending on the single farm payment,” said Gavin.
He completed the organic training course and attended some meetings before making his mind up to apply. He started with 25ac first to dip his toe in the system and eventually converted the whole farm to organics. It wasn’t all plain sailing however.
“Year one was horrendous, I had to buy organic seed, I couldn’t use fertiliser, my yields were low, I wasn’t allowed to sell the grain for higher organic prices and organic payments were very late,” Gavin explained.
In year two he was allowed to sell his grain labelled as ‘in-conversion’ to organic livestock farmers which was a help.
Despite the initial issues Gavin is very happy with the move. He is not allowed to use chemical fertilisers such as 18:6:12 or 10:10:20 anymore.
“To build and hold soil fertility I use cover crops, I swap straw for farmyard manure with a neighbour, I import slurry and I also import dairy sludge,” Gavin said.
Chemical pesticides and herbicides are also prohibited so Gavin no longer has tramlines through his crops. To reduce weed and disease pressures he uses a mixture of crop rotations, ploughing, false seed beds, cover crops and combi-crops.
“Crops are not perfectly clean but I haven’t had any major issues with diseases, probably because crops are not being pushed for big yields with nitrogen,” he said.
Now established as an organic farmer Gavin sells malting barley and malting wheat through Boortmalt.
This year’s spring barley yielded 1.8t/ac and made €475/t for malting. He also sells combi-crop grains (peas, barley and oats for example) to livestock farmers for approximately €400/t.
“If you are getting into organic cereals you have to make sure you have customers and also ways of handling, bagging and storing grain too,” warned Gavin.
“It is not something you can jump into but there is a good margin when it’s done well,” he concluded.
Next week we will discuss the market opportunities for organic produce and speak to an organic dairy farmer.
The announcement of the opening of the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) last week has raised debate in many farming households. The good news of the announcement and the short lead-in time for applications is bittersweet.
On one hand, farmers who missed out on joining the scheme the last time it opened in 2015 will very much welcome the news. However, others might apply now without giving the idea the full consideration required and join in fear of missing out.
The closing date for applications is 19 December. Talking to the experts, organic farming is not something you should get into at a whim. It can take years of planning and requires a different set of skills compared to conventional farming.
In his announcement of the opening of the third tranche of the OFS, Minister Andrew Doyle said that the Department are seeking more horticulture, cereal and dairy farmer applicants.
This he said was on the recommendations of an organic strategy group who highlighted “areas that are deemed to be in deficit”. A ranking system will be used in favour of those enterprises with beef and sheep enterprises ranked lowest for inclusion.
Irish Farmers Journal spoke with the organic farming specialist in Teagasc, Dan Clavin, about the scheme and asked him what the main points to note are before applying. Dan’s main piece of advice for farmers thinking of making an application is to make sure you are comfortable with the way of farming.
“Talk to advisors, talk to other organic farmers, remember there is no quick fix in organics, you cannot depend on chemical fertilisers,” he stressed.
Dan also pointed out that once you sign the contract, you are tied into the scheme for a minimum of five years. To leave it might require repayment of monies received unless you can prove force majeure. Dan outlined a number of steps farmers should take who are serious about making an application.
1 Consider
If you can answer yes to some or all of these questions then you should consider switching to organic production.
Crop systems
Can you incorporate a grass/clover break into your rotation? Do you have a source of farmyard manure/slurry on or near your own farm?Can you see yourself farming without relying on pesticides and chemical fertilisers?Animal systems
Is your current stocking rate below two livestock units per hectare? Can your animal housing be modified to incorporate a bedded lying area? Are you participating in GLAS? Some GLAS measures eg Traditional Hay Meadow, Low Input Permanent Pasture and Wild Bird Cover are not eligible for OFS payment. 2 Investigate
Get acquainted with the adjustments required by attending farm walks, talking to other organic farmers and or contacting a local advisor. Familiarise yourself with the organic standards A major factor distinguishing organic farming from other approaches to sustainable farming is the existence of internationally acknowledged standards and certification procedures. These standards have been developed to provide organic producers with consistent, clear rules as to how organic food should be produced. For example, chemical fertilisers cannot be used, but some products such as lime and rock phosphate are allowed. Clover and other legumes supply nitrogen. Routine preventative treatment of healthy animals is not allowed, with a focus on prevention rather than cure.
A two-year conversion period is required before a farm is given organic status.
3 Choose an organic certification body
The Organic Certification Bodies (OCBs) provide an inspection and certification service for all Organic Production Units in Ireland. There are two certification bodies to choose from, the Irish Organic Association (IOA, www.irishorganicassociation.ie) and Organic Trust (www.organictrust.ie).
The OCB sends an information pack on request. The pack is tailored to the producers’ needs and will generally contain information on the application and conversion process, an application form and a guide to the organic standards. Once the application and conversion plan are received and assessed, an initial inspection will be arranged.
4 Complete a QQI course in
organic production
A 25-hour ‘Organic Farming Principles’ course must be completed before acceptance into the OFS. Applicants must complete the course by 1 September 2019.
5 Application to the Organic Farming Scheme
First, complete a conversion plan and submit along with an application form and other requested documentation to an OCB.
Second, obtain an organic licence number from the OCB to become a “registered organic operator”. Third, apply to Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine to join the Organic Farming Scheme.
This requires two separate online applications:
Submit OFS application online. Closing date for applications will be 19 December 2018.Choose organic or in-conversion land parcels on Basic Payment Scheme in 2019 online application. 6 The conversion process
When the initial inspection has been carried out, the application approved and the “in-conversion licence” granted, a period of conversion begins. Normally two years, this period of conversion allows time for the land and producer to adjust to the organic methods. After the required conversion period expires, the inspection body may issue organic status to the farmer (unless conversion period is being extended), which allows the farmer to sell his/her produce as organic.
Payment rates
Table 1 shows payment rates for the different enterprise types. Higher payment rates are available for organic horticultural and tillage farmers. Organic horticulture producers, with horticulture area of one hectare or more, are eligible for payments provided that at least 50% of the area eligible for organic payment is cropped each year.
Organic tillage producers, with tillage area of 6ha or more, are eligible for payments. For all other holdings a minimum of 3ha is required for payments. More information and copies of the Organic Farming Scheme terms and conditions including the criteria for ranking and selection of applicants are available on the Department’s organics page at: http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/farmingsectors/organicfarming/organicsscheme/organicfarmingscheme/.
Farmer focus: Gavin Tully
Organic tillage farmer
Camolin, Co Wexford
Gavin Tully started the conversion process to organics in 2015 when the last tranche opened. The main reason for the conversion was lack of margin from conventional crops.
“When it came to conventional, I tried it all but I was always depending on the single farm payment,” said Gavin.
He completed the organic training course and attended some meetings before making his mind up to apply. He started with 25ac first to dip his toe in the system and eventually converted the whole farm to organics. It wasn’t all plain sailing however.
“Year one was horrendous, I had to buy organic seed, I couldn’t use fertiliser, my yields were low, I wasn’t allowed to sell the grain for higher organic prices and organic payments were very late,” Gavin explained.
In year two he was allowed to sell his grain labelled as ‘in-conversion’ to organic livestock farmers which was a help.
Despite the initial issues Gavin is very happy with the move. He is not allowed to use chemical fertilisers such as 18:6:12 or 10:10:20 anymore.
“To build and hold soil fertility I use cover crops, I swap straw for farmyard manure with a neighbour, I import slurry and I also import dairy sludge,” Gavin said.
Chemical pesticides and herbicides are also prohibited so Gavin no longer has tramlines through his crops. To reduce weed and disease pressures he uses a mixture of crop rotations, ploughing, false seed beds, cover crops and combi-crops.
“Crops are not perfectly clean but I haven’t had any major issues with diseases, probably because crops are not being pushed for big yields with nitrogen,” he said.
Now established as an organic farmer Gavin sells malting barley and malting wheat through Boortmalt.
This year’s spring barley yielded 1.8t/ac and made €475/t for malting. He also sells combi-crop grains (peas, barley and oats for example) to livestock farmers for approximately €400/t.
“If you are getting into organic cereals you have to make sure you have customers and also ways of handling, bagging and storing grain too,” warned Gavin.
“It is not something you can jump into but there is a good margin when it’s done well,” he concluded.
Next week we will discuss the market opportunities for organic produce and speak to an organic dairy farmer.
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