€179m in ANC payments issuing to farmers
The scheme provides payments to people farming land in designated areas that face significant hardships from factors such as remoteness, difficult topography, climatic problems, and poor soil conditions.
€179m in payments under the Areas of Natural Constraints (ANC) Scheme has commenced issuing to farmers.
The scheme provides payments to people farming land in designated areas that face significant hardships from factors such as remoteness, difficult topography, climatic problems, and poor soil conditions.
The payments currently issuing are an 85% advance payment on the ANC Scheme. The 15% of balancing payments are due to commence in early December.
The issuing of €179m to over 85,000 farmers is in line with previous years, with 85,000 farmers paid in the first pay run in 2022, the Department of Agriculture said.
Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue said that the issuing of payments under the ANC Scheme "is crucial to farm families and I know the importance of getting payments out as quickly as possible".
"Payments will be visible in farmers’ bank accounts in the coming days and my department will continue to process, as a matter of urgency, all remaining cases for payment as they meet scheme criteria," he added.
He also confirmed that his department is on track to commence payments of the advance under the Basic Income Support for Sustainability Scheme (BISS) from October 24 and eco-scheme payments from October 31.
"I wrote to farmers in March and again just a few weeks ago to explain that there would be some changes to payment dates in 2023 due to this being the first year of the new CAP Strategic Plan," Mr McConalogue said.
"A whole range of new schemes have been introduced along with substantial changes to existing schemes over a relatively short period and payments commencing today is a significant milestone achieved."
