Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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437. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if, in the context of the beef data genomics programme, he will delete the six-year rule as a condition of participation in the programme, and likewise, the draconian penalty whereby if a participant withdraws from the programme during the course of the six years, any payments already made will be recovered, which is fundamentally unreasonable and disproportionate, and will cause farmers not to participate at all; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20694/15]

Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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438. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if, in the context of the beef data genomics programme, he will adjust the requirement that 50% of the breeding female animals have to be four or five star by 2020, to a requirement to be three, four or five star animals, and ensure that calves weanlings replacements and cows are all included in the calculation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20697/15]

Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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440. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine in the context of the new beef data genomics programme, if the requirement that farmers who purchase a bull must buy a four or five star bull, post January 2017, and have a four or five star bull by 2020, will be adjusted to take account of the costs that will arise for this sector, especially for small suckler farms, given that the object and focus of the programme should be to enable them to improve their viability; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20699/15]

Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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444. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will provide an explanation in respect of genomic testing where there is a requirement of 60%, which far exceeds the 15% which applied in 2014, and which was confirmed by the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation to be adequate for an effective suckler genomic programme, and where it is clear that testing non-breeding male animals or females that are destined for export is wasteful; if, in this context, this requirement of 60% will be reduced to 15% of the herd; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20704/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 437, 438, 440 and 444 together.

The Beef Data and Genomics Programme (BDGP) forms part of Ireland’s Rural Development Programme and will provide suckler farmers in Ireland with funding of some €300 million over the next 6 years. The BDGP builds on the investment in data recording and genomics in recent years, and will ultimately bring about long-term improvements to the sector by fundamentally improving the genetic quality of the beef herd.

The BDGP has been approved under the agri-environment provisions of the Rural Development Regulations and can make an important contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the national herd. The six year commitment arises from the requirements of the EU Rural Development Regulation under which this scheme is co-funded by the EU and Irish taxpayers. Article 28 of this Regulation stipulates that all agri-environmental schemes must be at least 5 years in duration and farmers will be familiar with multi-annual schemes such as GLAS and REPS where similar conditions apply.

The six year timeframe for the BDGP provides a guaranteed and stable payment for suckler farmers allowing them to plan and budget on their farms for the duration of the programme. It is important to note that the penalty system includes appropriate tolerances where only minor non-compliances occur and no penalty will apply in these cases. In more serious cases there must of course be an applicable penalty however, on balance, I am satisfied that the approach reflects the most proportionate response consistent with the Regulations. The requirement to seek full refund of payment only applies in the event of permanent withdrawal from the scheme. As always in such cases, force majeure clauses have been included in the Terms and Conditions where withdrawal is due to circumstances beyond the applicant’s control such as illness or disease. There is also a provision included for transfers by gift or inheritance whereby the transferee can decide to take over the commitments or exit from the programme entirely.

The BDGP builds on the schemes operated by my Department in recent years and most of the actions will already be familiar to most farmers entering the scheme, including the data recording elements and the genotyping requirements. The replacement strategy is one of the main new elements of the BDGP over and above existing schemes for the suckler beef sector. The need for genetic improvement in the Irish suckler herd is widely acknowledged, and the adoption of genomic technology is a critically important tool in increasing production efficiency and ultimately farmer margins. The requirement for farmers to move towards using 4 and 5 star rated stock bulls and heifers is essential to the programmes objectives. An adjustment to allow the use of 3 star animals and heifer calves under 16 months would require engagement with the Commission and would jeopardise the operation of the programme.

In addition, I should note that many farmers are already well on the way to meeting the requirement for 4 and 5 star animals. Analysis undertaken by ICBF of the 2014 Beef Genomics Scheme has indicated that some 30% of herds are already compliant with the requirement for female animals in 2020 i.e. that the number of 4 and 5 star heifers are equal to 50% of the reference animals on each farm. Furthermore, 52% are already compliant with the 2018 requirement. All farmers will receive comprehensive training, and ongoing information and advice to assist them in introducing the required breeding strategy. I am also aware that these requirements will take time to introduce which is why there is a 5 year lead-in time included in the design of the programme.

The requirement for those farmers using a stock bull is that at least one of the bulls on the holding on 30 June 2019 must be a genotyped 4 or 5 star bull on either the terminal or replacement index. There are separate provisions for farmers using AI.

I do not believe this represents a large additional cost on the sector given the large number of 4 and 5 star bulls already on suckler farms and the benefits will outweigh any such costs. Analysis undertaken by the ICBF has shown that there will be a sufficient quantity of such bulls available for BDGP herds. Approximately 10,000 pedigree bulls will be eligible for the scheme each year whereas, based on the 2014 Beef Genomic Scheme, the BDGP herds would require about 7,000 such animals each year. There is also a very wide range of AI bulls available for pedigree beef breeding that are 4 or 5 stars on either the replacement or terminal index.

The number of animals to be genotyped each year will be equal to 60% of the number of calved suckler cows that the applicant had on his/her holding in 2014 – known as the applicant’s “reference animals”. The number of “reference animals” will be advised to applicants upon acceptance into the scheme. For example, an applicant with 15 reference animals in 2014 must have sufficient animals to genotype 9 cows/heifers/calves/stock bulls, in each year of the programme, without repetition.

The 60% of the herd that will be genotyped each year represents an increase compared to the 15% under the 2014 Beef Genomic Scheme, however the percentage of the overall payment related to genotyping is broadly the same under both schemes. The 15% genotyping in 2014 was undertaken to develop the training population for genomic which provides the platform for the more widespread application of genomics and higher level of genotyping now made possible under the BDGP.

The 60% genotyping requirement reflects the need to genotype a high percentage of female calves at birth within scheme herds and to genotype female animals introduced from non-scheme herds so that sufficient 4 and 5 star animals can be identified. The 60% requirement will also include pedigree males and cows for ongoing research and knowledge development. This increased level of genotyping improves the reliability of the breeding indexes and, importantly, ensures the identification of sufficient numbers of 4 & 5 star females required by BDGP herds.

Of course, like all RDP schemes, the payments under this programme are calculated to cover costs and income foregone including a substantial overhead.

The cost of the genotyping will be finalised following the conclusion of a public tendering process undertaken by the ICBF in relation to laboratory analysis, tissue tags and the DNA chip. It is expected that this will result in a reduced sampling/genotype cost compared to the 2014 scheme.

Participants in the BDGP will receive advice and guidance on an ongoing basis to assist them in meeting the requirements. The BDGP, like all RDP Schemes, will be subject to mid-term review. If aspects of the scheme can be improved in the future, I will seek to address these issues in consultation with the EU Commission in a manner consistent with the relevant regulation.