Over 1000 Conditionality Inspections Took Place in 2024 Dafm
Under Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 and Ireland's Common Agricultural Policy Strategic Plan, farmers must comply with 11 Statutory Management Requirements (SMRs) and nine Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition (GAEC) standards, relating to:
Climate and the environment, including water, soil, and biodiversity;
Public and plant health;
Animal welfare.
These requirements are monitored by mandatory inspections on a minimum of 1% of CAP beneficiaries annually.
According to DAFM, these inspections act as an effective means of protecting the environment and ensuring that farmers comply with a wide range of public goods regulations concerned with food and animal welfare.
The conditionality inspections in 2024 were carried out for all relevant SMRs and GAECs on the selected farms.
In addition, DAFM carried out on behalf of local authorities 622 inspections in relation to SMR 2, Protection of Waters against Pollution caused by Nitrates.
Other public bodies also cross-reported instances of non-compliance with a particular SMR or GAEC for consideration to DAFM.
Separately, local authorities are also set to carry out a projected 4,513 farm inspections in 2025, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has confirmed.
According to the agency, the inspections fall under the Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) for the Protection Waters Regulation.
Allocation of farm inspection numbers to each local authority for 2024 and 2025 Source: EPA
The EPA's latest published allocation of farm inspections (initial GAP) indicate that the local authority for Cork City & County is set to carry out the most farm inspections this year, with 587 projected.
Next is the local authority for Tipperary with 350 farm inspections projected for 2025, followed by the local authority for Meath with 318 proposed.
According to the EPA, the allocation for each local authority is based on risk assessment and impacts on water quality.
In addition, the EPA's National Agricultural Inspection Programme (NAIP) Summary Report detailed that 149 farms were cross-reported to the agency for non-compliance, leading to penalties in Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) payments.
The EPA states that the top two reasons for non-compliance were the control of soiled water and management of farmyard manure.
The EPA stressed that while it welcomes the increase in inspections, local authorities must take stronger enforcement actions and carry out more follow-up inspections to confirm compliance.
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