NIFDA calls for government support

The chair of the NI Food and Drink Association (NIFDA), Brian Irwin has called on government to provide support to local companies “before it is too late”.

He said that the closure of foodservice outlets has left manufacturers, including many small and medium sized companies facing serious stock and cashflow difficulties.

“Support in the form of grants should be given to allow firms to invest further in automation, advanced manufacturing, innovation and skills. A capital expenditure support scheme is urgently needed to future proof the industry and should be an immediate priority” said Irwin.

Difference

He estimates that foodservice accounted for around 30% of the market, and while there has been an increase in retail demand, it does not come close to making up the difference.

SAF deadline unchanged in NI

Now is not the appropriate time to “take the foot off the pedal” by extending the Single Application deadline beyond 15 May, DAERA Minister Edwin Poots has said.

“I could put it back by a month not a problem, but I don’t want to put back payments on 16 October by a month,” Minister Poots told MLAs at Stormont. “I want to keep the pressure on and get as many of these applications in as possible,” he said.

DAERA confirmed on Monday that 16,000 applications had been received so far, around two-thirds of the expected intake and an increase on the same period last year.

Limited details on RDP replacement

Officials in the NI civil service have been given limited information about the new fund which is to replace the Rural Development Programme (RDP) in the UK.

The current RDP in NI has a budget of up to £589m, including €228 of EU money, and is used to funded schemes such as the Farm Business Improvement Scheme, the Environmental Farming Scheme and the LEADER programme.

The UK government has said a new “shared prosperity fund” will replace all EU structural funds after Brexit, including the RDP.

“One of the challenges has been getting information on the fund,” DAERA permanent secretary Dr Denis McMahon said at Stormont last week.

Waiting

“There were proposals put in that we should at least get the same level of funding that we got before, but at this stage we are still waiting on the outcome of that,” he added.