UFU Watch
The UFU Executive Committee have supported a resolution presented by the UFU Seeds & Cereals Policy Committee this week calling on DARD to impose no financial penalty on growers should any inspection reveal an error in EFA delivery under the new Greening CAP rules for 2015.
Northern Ireland Growers are now beginning to plant crops that will be harvested under the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) regime rules and to-date they still have not been told in detail what all the rules will be. At a recent meeting with DARD officials arable and horticulture producers were advised to ‘err on the side of caution’ when calculating and delivering all requirements under the new Greening rules. This advice was deemed unacceptable by the UFU’s Executive Committee.
With the planting season now underway for the 2015 cropping year and no clarity at this stage on a number of EFA options it is unreasonable to expect 100% delivery accuracy. This lack of clarity leaves farmers in a position where they are now having to make assumptions that may or may not be correct. The UFU have been seeking specific answers to a number of questions for almost a year and now question the logic of how any inspection for EFA delivery in 2015 could result in a financial penalty for the growers.
The UFU are now calling on DARD to give guidance and clarify what their position is on this very serious matter.
