Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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420. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if there will be an increase in funding of at least €25 million for the beef data and genomics programme, to bring it to €200 per animal (details supplied). [43670/17]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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I am very conscious of the importance of the suckler herd to the Irish economy and agri-food sector in particular.

I have been very active in highlighting the potentially very damaging impact of a Mercosur deal on the European and Irish beef sectors and in turn potential impact on the Irish suckler sector.

The Beef Data and Genomics Programme (BDGP) provides farmers with some €300 million of funding over the next six years. I will continue to support fully this programme through the lifetime of the current RDP.

Earlier this year I re-opened BDGP for beef suckler farmers who were not already part of the scheme. This scheme (BDGP II) provides for six years of payments to farmers for completion of actions which deliver accelerated genetic improvement in the Irish national herd and improvement of its environmental sustainability. Payment rates and actions for participants in BDGP II are the same as those in the original scheme, with the exception that the training and carbon navigator actions must be completed by 31st October 2017. I currently cannot give any commitments to increase payments under this scheme.