The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association (ICMSA) has urged the Department of Agriculture to complete its review of Targeted Agriculture Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) reference costs and proceed immediately with the increases.

The slow review is costing “valuable time” on improving water quality, ICMSA farm business committee chair Pat O’Brien has said.

This delay, he added, is jamming up the system, as interested farmers await the publication of the review.

"The Department, while it has confirmed it is working on updating overall costings, said it will be later in the year when the review is complete, with no definite timeline provided.

"Whole building seasons are being lost through delay and prevarication on something that everyone knows will have to be updated and rectified," O'Brien said.

Storm damage

O’Brien also reminded farmers that a two-week TAMS tranche is now open, until Friday 28 March, for items related to storm damage.

The items for which applications will be accepted during this period include back-up PTO generators and bovine fencing.

Applications for items not outlined by the Minister for Agriculture as related to storm damage will not be accepted in this tranche and must be made instead when the next regular tranche opens on 29 March.

"This mini additional tranche should not delay the approvals of applications under tranche six, which closed on 7 March, and particularly for slurry storage where farmers will be hoping to complete the work before the end of summer and so show the incremental progress that will all go to help retain Ireland’s nitrates derogation.

“This delay is costing us valuable time and progress that could matter for that critical derogation decision at the year’s end," he warned.

Confusion

O’Brien also highlighted confusion around grant aid for robotic milking machines under the TAMS Dairy Equipment Scheme and called on the Department to update the scheme’s terms and conditions.

“It was confirmed last October that farmers could now apply for funding for more than one robot between TAMS II and III, but the scheme’s terms and conditions updated in January this year still outline that grant aid will only be paid on one machine per holding if an applicant has received grant aid for the item previously."

This, he argued, is not correct, adding that the terms and conditions should be updated immediately to reflect the change announced last October.