Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue TD, has announced that more than €172 million in ACRES advance payments has been paid to farmers in recent weeks in respect of their participation in the scheme in 2024. This brings the total received by farmers in the scheme to €419 million, following the payment of €247 million for their 2023 participation.
Speaking just prior to Christmas, Minister McConalogue said: “ACRES is an ambitious scheme which seeks to deliver environmental improvements through a wide range of actions, including complex new results-based components. I am therefore pleased to note that a total of €419 million has been paid to farmers to date. Advance payments of €21.9 million are issuing to 5,153 ACRES participants this week in respect of their participation in the scheme in 2024.
“This is the third pay run in respect of 2024 advance payments. These began in November, and pre-Christmas payments bring to €172.1 million the total amount issued, and the number of farmers paid to 39,826 across both Tranche 1 and 2, and across ACRES General and Co-operation approaches”.
Minister McConalogue continued: “While it is welcome that over 73% of the total number of participants in ACRES will have received their 2024 advance payment before Christmas, I also wish to assure those who have not received their advance payments in recent weeks that the processing of payments is continuing, with pay runs to be made on a fortnightly basis from the end of January 2025.
“The participation of more than 54,000 farmers in a national agri-environmental scheme is a testament to the interest and commitment of Irish farmers in protecting and enhancing our environment in terms of biodiversity, water quality and climate measures,” the minister concluded.
