Farmers in Northern Ireland will soon start to receive their money under the 2017 Areas of Natural Constraint (ANC) scheme in March.
Agriculture Minister Michelle McIlveen has also announced the payment rates for the 2017 Areas of Natural Constraint (ANC) Scheme.
Payment rates will be £56.47 per hectare for the first 200 hectares, and £42.35 per hectare above 200 hectares. The split rates are a requirement of the EU Regulation which states that payments must be degressive above a threshold level of claimed area per holding.
Announcing the rates of payment Miss McIlveen said: “This is the second year of the Pillar II Areas of Natural Constraint Scheme and farmers claimed for ANC payments as part of their Single Application in May 2016.
“The payment rate for the first 200 hectares of eligible forage land claimed in the Severely Disadvantaged Area will be £56.47 per hectare, and the payment rate for eligible forage land claimed above 200 hectares will be £42.35 per hectare.”
The Minister concluded: “ANC payments will begin to issue in early March 2017 and most payments should be processed before the end of that month.”
The ANC scheme is part of the Rural Development Programme 2014-2020. It provides a payment on eligible hectares of forage land in the Severely Disadvantaged Area to compensate for all or part of the additional costs and income forgone related purely to the constraints for agricultural production in the area.
'Decreasing significantly'
Ulster Farmers Union has welcomed the announcement, but warns the Northern Irish government body DAERA 'must find ways' to extend the scheme beyond 2018 given that the total pot of funding streams coming into the ANC is 'decreasing significantly.'
The UFU's hill farming chairman, Ian Buchanan said the payments are a 'crucial element' of farm incomes in these areas.
He said: “This will provide some much needed reassurance and certainty for farmers facing a difficult cash flow situation, after another year of volatile prices.
“Volatility makes it difficult for businesses to plan ahead to improve margins. The minister's decision for 2018 confirms the importance of ANC payments. These are a vital income boost for farmers who have to deal with the challenges of working on difficult land and with a harsher climate,” he said.
While the minister has decided to extend the ANC scheme, by a further year into 2018, the UFU says it is crucial DAERA find ways to extend the scheme beyond then to help avert the natural decay of many of these areas over the longer term.
It says there has been an underspend in the ANC scheme in the last two years, and that similar under-spends are likely with other Rural Development Programme schemes potentially leaving monies available for further extensions.
