Organic Farming Scheme under review: suspended until September

The details of this review, announced on 29th July, seem to suggest that without a detailed and decent business plan, you won't actually be allowed into the organic agri-food system.

Here are some key elements taken from the press release:

Trevor Sargent TD, Minister for Food and Horticulture at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, today announced a review of the Organic Farming Scheme, under which support is paid to farmers in the sector. The review will look at how available funds are used to best effect to deliver increased organic production and attain the 5% Government target

The outcome of the review will be announced during National Organic Week, which begins this year on 14 September.

Minister Sargent emphasised that like all Schemes operated by the Department, participation levels in future would be determined by the amount of funding available. "Funding for the Organic Farming Scheme will be determined later in the year when the Government are preparing the Estimates for 2010. It is my responsibility to make sure that what funding we have is used to bring maximum benefit and to realise the growing potential of organic farming in Ireland", he said.

The Minister indicated that he was likely to amend the Scheme to include selection criteria that would identify those applicants who were most likely to deliver increased output, particularly in those areas where production is not meeting the demands of the home and export markets. "Some prospective applicants may have more to offer than others, and I would urge anyone who is thinking of applying to do some research first, undertake some training and talk to an organic adviser or one of the organic certification bodies," said the Minister.

The existing Organic Farming Scheme is suspended for new applications from today, pending the outcome of the review.

See full text here