Latest news with #Non-ProductiveInvestments
Agriland
7 days ago
- Business
- Agriland
Over 60% of ACRES scorecards submitted as deadline nears
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has confirmed that 61% of Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) scorecards have been submitted. 125,000 scorecards were issued at the beginning of June of which 76,322 were returned by last Friday (August 8). The department has reminded farmers and their advisors that scorecards must be submitted by August 31 to allow advance payments to be made in November. The application window for Non-Productive Investments (NPIs) under the agri-environmental scheme is currently open. DAFM said that so far 80 claims have been submitted for 2023 while 22 have been submitted for 2024. The application window for Landscape Actions remains open. The department has also confirmed that 96% of all ACRES participants are now fully paid for their participation in the scheme in 2023 and 2024. By August 8, a total of over €515.1 million had been paid to ACRES participants. Balancing payments, in respect of participation in the Scheme in 2023, were made on August 8 to 1 participant. No payment issued as the interim payment covered the contract value. This brought the total paid in respect of participation in ACRES in 2023 to €248.8 million, paid to 44,406 participants, or over 99% of all ACRES Tranche 1 participants. A total of 234 farmers have yet to receive their final payments for 2023. Of these, 37 have already received an interim payment of either €4,000 or €5,000, respectively. The department issued advance payments, in respect of participation in the scheme in 2024, to 22 farmers on August 8, with those payments amounting to €100,325. This payment run brought total 2024 advance payments to almost €227.1 million, paid to 52,832 farmers, or almost 98% of all ACRES participants. Advance payments in respect of scheme participation in 2024 have still to be made to 1,082 ACRES participants across Tranches 1 and 2. Of these 1,082 participants, 234 are also awaiting their balancing payment in respect of 2023, as that must be paid before the 2024 advance payment may be made to them. Balancing payments in respect of participation in the Scheme in 2024 commenced on May 15. The most recent payment run paid €50,681 to a further 71 participants. This brought the total paid in balancing payments in respect of 2024 to over €39 million, to 51,773 participants. The department said that outstanding payments will continue to be made weekly once contracts are cleared for payment.
Agriland
06-08-2025
- Business
- Agriland
235 Farmers Yet to Receive Final Acres Payments for 2023 Dafm
A total of almost €515 million has now been paid to farmers in the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES), the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) confirmed. Balancing payments amounting to €11,342 were made on August 1 to 11 farmers for participation in the agri-environmental scheme in 2023. This means the total paid in respect of participation in ACRES in 2023 is €248.8 million to 44,405 farmers, or over 99% of all ACRES tranche 1 participants. DAFM said that 235 farmers have yet to receive their final payments for 2023. Of these participants, 38 have already received an interim payment of either €4,000 or €5,000, respectively. The department added that in many instances, this will cover the entire amount of the payment due. Advance payments, in respect of ACRES participation in 2024, were made on August 1 to 118 participants, with those payments amounting to €504,572. This payment run brought total 2024 advance payments to almost €227 million, paid to 52,810 farmers, or almost 98% of all ACRES participants. Advance payments for 2024 have still to be made to 1,104 ACRES participants across tranches 1 and 2. Of these 1,104 farmers, 235 are also awaiting their balancing payment in respect of 2023, as that must be paid before the 2024 advance payment may be made to them. Balancing payments for participation in the scheme in 2024 commenced on May 15. The most recent payment run of August 1 paid €178,195 to a further 317 farmers. This brought the total paid in balancing payments in respect of 2024 to approximately €39 million, to 51,702 participants. DAFM said that this means that almost 96% of all participants are up to date with payments. ACRES payments will continue to be made weekly to the remaining participants once their contracts are cleared for payment. Meanwhile, DAFM said that 125,000 scorecards were issued at the beginning of June of which 65,546 have been submitted to date. ACRES scorecards must be submitted by August 31 to allow advance payments to be made in November. The claims system for Non-Productive Investments (NPIs) is also now open for applications. To date, 57 claims have been submitted for 2023 while 12 have been submitted for 2024. The department added that the application window for Landscape Actions remains open.
Agriland
05-08-2025
- General
- Agriland
DAFM reminds farmers that ACRES deadline is approaching
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has advised farmers who are participating in the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) that the assessment and scoring of land / parcels is underway, and the deadline for completion is August 31. According to DAFM, non commonage land / parcels in ACRES which attract a results-based payment are currently being assessed and scored by ACRES advisors. Scorecards were issued to ACRES advisors from June 3 2025, in respect of the land / parcels to be scored this year. There are 10 scorecards used for the assessment of the land / parcels, on which results-based payments are made. Seven of the scorecards are habitat-focused, while three are species-specific, such as chough, breeding wader and corncrake. Advisors use one or more scorecards, relevant to the land being scored. As this is the mid-point of the scoring period, the department is reminding advisors that completed scorecards should be returned within 14 days of initiating the first scorecard and before the last date for submission of scorecards, which is August 31. It is essential that completed scorecards are submitted by the deadline to facilitate the timely issue of advance payments to participants for 2025 later this year. Commonage land in the ACRES co-operation zones is also currently being assessed and scored, in the respective zones. Meanwhile commonage in ACRES outside those co-operation zones is being assessed and scored by contractors engaged by DAFM. According to DAFM the claims system for the submission of claims by an ACRES participant, or their advisor, in respect of the Non-Productive Investments (NPIs) is now open. Applications for payment should be submitted as soon as possible. Finally, the Landscape Actions element of ACRES is open for applications for actions that will support farmers in the co-operation approach of the scheme to target specific environmental priorities. These are large-scale environmental actions focusing on issues such as threatened species, water quality protection, invasive species management and encroaching scrub management in species-rich grassland. The ACRES co-operation project (CP) teams will be engaging with farmers in their areas, and will be preparing applications on their behalf in the form of a Landscape Action Annual Works Plan.
