Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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462. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on the position of an organisation (details supplied) regarding funding to the beef data and genomics programme over a suckler premium. [22589/18]

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. 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) Rural Development Programme.  

In 2017 the BDGP was reopened to beef suckler farmers who were not already part of the scheme. We have 24,775 participants between BDGP I and II. BDGP II provides for payments to farmers for completion of actions which deliver accelerated genetic improvement in the national herd and improvement of its environmental sustainability. A total of 42.8 million has been paid to participants for 2017 already.

The BDGP was agreed with the European Commission as part of Ireland’s Rural Development Programme (2014-2020) alongside a number of other schemes such as ANCs, GLAS and TAMS, which also benefit suckler farmers. I am very conscious of the positive effect that the programme is having on the Irish suckler herd. It will help to improve productivity, profitability and carbon efficiency in the national herd.

I agree that in our deliberations on CAP reform post-2020, encouraging generational renewal should be a priority.  The current CAP, which was agreed during the Irish Presidency in 2013, allowed for supplementary payments from the National Reserve for young trained farmers and for their prioritisation in the assessment of applications under the Rural Development Programme. In addition, a range of agri-taxation measures are in place to support land mobility, inter-generational transfer and farm partnerships.