Mart grant scheme

Speaking at last Friday’s Irish Cattle and Sheep Association (ICSA) field event on Jim Cosgrave’s farm in Enfield, Co Meath, Stephen Conroy from the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF) told attendees that 40 marts (from a total of 87) had applied for the Mart Modernisation Scheme.

The scheme, launched on 23 May 2016 and closed for applications on 10 June 2016, was set up to provide aid for the purchase of one new ringside display screen per eligible premises to display ICBF €uro-Star ratings for beef breeding stock and Economic Breeding Index (EBI) information for dairy breeding stock.

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Funding is fixed at €300,000, with the final amount payable to each mart determined after the total number of eligible applications is known, with a maximum level of grant aid set at 40% of the purchase cost excluding VAT to a maximum grant of €4,000 per eligible premises.