| Conservation of rare breeds: | 20 Livestock units €200 per unit. |
Conservation Of Rare Breeds, Objective:
To conserve the genetic diversity of native breeds that are at risk of extinction.
This action endeavours to retain and where possible, increase populations of specific rare breeds to ensure their long-term survival.
To be eligible for this action you must be a member of the relevant breed society at the time of application.
Other breeds may be considered for inclusion under this action in future tranches.
The maximum number of livestock units that can be claimed annually for the cattle, sheep and goat breeds and the Kerry Bog Ponies is 20. The maximum number of livestock units for Connemara & Irish Draught Horses that can be claimed for annually is 10.
Payment will be made in arrears based on the monthly average livestock units of owned registered animals over the previous recording year.
Note: The maximum number of livestock units for payment across all breeds is 20.
Breeding females that produce a registered offspring above the basic eligibility requirements will be paid an additional payment of €75 per progeny registered up to overall maximum payment ceiling.
If an applicant selects Conservation of Rare Breeds action and shows proof of membership of breed society at the time of application, he/she may be eligible for Tier 1 priority entry to the general scheme.
Livestock units for consideration for payment are calculated as follows:
Bovines under 1 year old 0.40 LU
Bovines 1 but less than 2 years old 0.70 LU
Bovine male, 2 years and over 1.00 LU
Suckler cow and bovine female, 2 years and over 0.80 LU
Equines over 6 months of age 0.80 LU
Sheep/Goats over 6 months of age 0.10 LU
Note: The above livestock unit equivalents apply when an animal is kept for a full year.
Livestock passports and where applicable, pedigree certificates issued by the relevant breed society, must be in the participants own name or where in joint names, at least one of the persons must also be on the herd number used when applying for this measure.
Requirements
To be eligible for the Conservation of Rare Breeds action participants must:
1. Be a member of a recognised breed society for the duration of the contract.
2. From at least one of the breeds selected, produce at least 1 offspring that is registered with the relevant breed society before the end of year 3 of the contract.
3. Register all progeny from a purebred mating with the relevant breed society when seeking a rare breed payment on an animal.
4. Maintain an up-to-date monthly record of all registered animals owned by you.
5. Have at least 0.10 LU eligible for payment each year
Documents required for payment
1. Proof of membership with relevant breed society
2. Identification documents and certificates issued by the relevant breed society for each registered animal
3. Complete Rare Breeds annual record declaration.
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Requirements for the different types of livestock to be eligible for payment
Bovine 1. All females between 6 months to 2 years of age will be considered for payment. 2. An adult female(s) (over 2 years of age) must be mated to a purebred male of the same breed at each mating. Breeding females must produce at least 1 registered offspring before the end of the contract, otherwise there will be full clawback. 3. All bulls between 6 months to 2 years of age will be considered for payment. 4. Bulls greater than 2 years of age up to a maximum of 1 bull per 5 cows will be considered for payment (1 bull considered for payment if 1 to 5 cows, 2 bulls if 6 to 10 cows etc.).