By UFU policy officer Kellie Rouse
2024 has been an eventful year for agriculture. As we look back on what has happened in beef and sheep farming in Northern Ireland, we are thankful that despite all the other issues that are ongoing, beef and lamb prices have remained strong throughout 2024 with the outlook for 2025 prices looking positive.
Beef scheme
At the beginning of 2024, we had the start of the Beef Carbon Reduction Scheme (BCRS). To be eligible for the scheme farmers had to slaughter cattle 30 months and under. Initially payments were phased in from £20 in January, £40 in February and £60 in March. From April onwards the payment was £75 per eligible animal and this will continue throughout the scheme.
From 1 January 2025, the eligibility age of slaughter is 28 months and under. In year three it is 27 months and under, and in year four it is 26 months and under.
The opt in portal for the BCRS opened in April 2024. However, 2,200 eligible farmers have yet to opt into the scheme. The deadline for opting into the scheme is 31 December 2024. Farmers only need to opt into the scheme once. Please visit the BCRS opt in portal, by using the following link, https://www2.dardni.gov.uk/beefsustainability.
Payments for eligible 2024 cattle will be made in March 2025. Farmers are reminded they are eligible for payment if they kept the animal for 60 consecutive days out of the last 100 days before the slaughter date. Farmers can view which animals are eligible for payment on the BCRS portal.
Only animals born in NI are eligible. The maximum number of eligible cattle will be limited to 352,000 per year for NI. DAERA’s aim for BCRS is to reduce slaughter age to improve farm profitability and production, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve environment sustainability.
Suckler Cow Scheme
Unfortunately, despite many farmers planning for the Suckler Cow Scheme, it has been delayed from 1 January 2025 to 1 April 2025. DAERA has blamed budget constraints for the delay.
Calving interval targets for year one – 415 days, year two – 405 days, year three – 395 days and year four – 385 days. For many farmers, by year four, this target is extremely difficult to achieve and we hope DAERA takes this into consideration.
Age of first calving targets are year one – 34 months and under, year two – 32 months and under, year three – 30 months and under and year four – 29 months and under.
The UFU would encourage DAERA to now postpone the start date for the Suckler Cow Scheme to January 2026. We feel that starting the scheme in the middle of spring calving will be a disadvantage to our farmers. For example, a spring calving herd in 2025 with cows calving in January – March 2025 will not be eligible until January – March 2026 with a year one target of 415 days. However, cows calving in April 2025 will be eligible but by April 2026, they will be required to meet the year two target of 405 days.
New schemes can be difficult enough to adjust too, and expecting farmers to potentially have to monitor two different calving interval targets is in no way helpful. Also, the BCRS runs on a calendar year and to keep the scheme farmer friendly, both schemes should run on a calendar basis.
There is also the issue of communication and events in relation to the suckler scheme. This is suggested to take place between January – March despite being the busiest period for a suckler farm.
Suckler cow scheme numbers have been decreasing in NI and we need this scheme to support a sustainable suckler cow industry, one that helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, this cannot be achieved if it is not farmer friendly.
Sheep Industry Taskforce
The NI Sheep Industry Taskforce was established in Autumn 2022 and published its reports in February 2023. However, there is still a lack of sheep support in NI.
The NI Industry Sheep Taskforce continues to work closely with DAERA, reiterating the importance of providing sheep support to help improve sustainability in the sheep industry and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This year the sheep taskforce has had several meetings with officials including the AERA committee, Minister Muir and DAERA’s policy team.
The key asks of the NI Sheep Industry Taskforce include a sheep genetic improvement scheme, sheep health and welfare scheme, sustainable land management and biodiversity scheme, bespoke sheep capital investment measures and funding for research programmes for sheep.
The NI Sheep Industry Taskforce reports were recently referenced multiple times in a sheep motion in Stormont. Across all NI parties, there was recognition that the sheep industry played a vital role within the agri-food industry. They acknowledged how efficiencies could be improved to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and that farmers who only farm sheep, will lose 17% of their basic payment scheme with no option of regaining it. They called for the DAERA Minister to outline his plans to support the NI sheep industry.
