Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry South, Independent)
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119. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on whether the compensation programme that was belatedly put in place regarding BVD needs to be expanded (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43824/13]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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My Department introduced a compensation scheme for herdowners, who have 2 or more eligible beef breed calves, in suckler herds born on or after 1 January 2013. To qualify, the herdowner must comply with the conditions of the BVD Eradication Programme, the statutory basis for which is set out in S.I. 532 of 2012. In particular, the calves must have had an initial positive or inconclusive test for the Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Virus (BVD), and be removed from the herd, with a date of death notified to the Animal Identification Movement System (AIM). Payment will be made at a rate of €100 in respect of the second and subsequent P.I. calves in suckler herds.

The scheme is to calves from suckler herds because the “payback period” in suckler herds is more than twice that of dairy herds: it is estimated that the benefit of the eradication of this disease to dairy farmers will exceed the cost involved after a period of 6 months.