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2 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
The pilot is due to commence at the end of the month allowing DAERA and CAFRE to proceed with a pilot horticulture scheme in NI. In total, a budget of £7.7m will potentially be made available over the next four years to fund the scheme, which aims to grow a sector, currently worth around £100m to the NI economy.
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2 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
Over two years into a four-year project to incorporate clover into all dairy, beef and sheep grazing swards at CAFRE Greenmount, it is clear that transitioning away from ryegrass-only swards comes with a number of practical challenges. At a clover open day held last Thursday at the beef and sheep centre at Greenmount, CAFRE advisers acknowledged that a four-year timeframe is “ambitious” and for most commercial farms, it would probably take 10 years to fully switch to grass-clover swards.
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2 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
Prices on offer for fat cattle in the meat plants are easing again this week, with base quotes for U-3 grades down another 10p/kg to 622p and 624p for clean steers and 624p and 626p for clean heifers. More is available, with reports from farmers suggesting factory agents are trying to buy cattle at around the 640p/kg mark. Regular suppliers are starting out closer to 650p/kg.
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2 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
Increased cattle prices and high rates of disease mean that DAERA officials expect the final bill for bovine TB in NI in the current financial year to April 2026 to end up over £65m. Addressing the Stormont Agriculture committee last Thursday, DAERA Finance Director Roger Downey confirmed that projections suggest an extra £4.3m will be required in the current year to compensate farmers for reactors taken off farms.
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2 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
In hindsight, the decision taken within DAERA to publish a Nutrients Action Programme (NAP) consultation, which included totally unrealistic proposals to tackle the problem issue of excess phosphorus from NI agriculture, looks to be a significant blunder. For some farmers, it has reinforced a belief that the current DAERA Minister Andrew Muir has some sort of underlying agenda to cut livestock and remove people off the land.
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3 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
Farmers in Scotland continue to receive the highest direct payments per farm business, with farm support payouts that are more than double that received in NI, analysis by the Irish Farmers Journal shows. The latest list of farm support recipients across the UK, recently published by DEFRA, shows that in the 2023-2024 payment window, 15,231 farmers in Scotland received direct support averaging £25,480 per business.
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3 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
Local farm research organisation, AgriSearch has created an online tool using Microsoft Excel which allows farmers to input their data and see where they might stand in relation to some of the key issues identified in the Nutrients Action Programme (NAP). Those key issues include the annual manure nitrogen (N) loading per ha, which for non-derogated farms is currently limited to 170kg.
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3 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
The plants are still pulling prices this week, with quotes typically at 630p for U-3 grading steers and 634p for the same grade of heifers. Those quotes are down 10p/kg on last week and it is a similar scenario for actual deals on offer, with farmers reporting prices starting around the 650p/kg mark this week. However, the prices paid being quoted by the Livestock and Meat Commission (LMC) suggest there are even better deals on offer.
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3 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
The 1,000 farmers who came to CAFRE Greenmount last Thursday delivered a powerful message to DAERA that a fundamental rethink is required around the proposed changes to the Nutrients Action Programme (NAP) in NI. It remains to be seen how it plays out in the weeks ahead, although it would be a surprise if Agriculture Minister Andrew Muir were to accede to industry demands and pull the consultation at this stage. That consultation has been extended by a month to Thursday 24 July.
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3 weeks ago | 
farmersjournal.ie | David Wright
The facilities at CAFRE Greenmount were close to being overwhelmed last Thursday when around 1,000 farmers turned up to voice their opposition to proposed changes to the Nutrients Action Programme (NAP). The meeting, which was the second in-person event organised as part of a public consultation process, heard passionate contributions from the floor, while the proceedings were briefly interrupted by a tractor protest.
