Scottish sheep producers have only a "50/50 chance" of pulling off a favourable deal next week over the need for 100% electronic identification (EID) accuracy to avoid costly compliance penalties on their Single Farm Payments.
That was the view of NFU Scotland President Nigel Miller, speaking at a press conference at the Royal Highland Show.
With the European Commission expected to decide in 10 days’ time whether to allow a separate Scottish scheme with tolerance for inaccuracies or a UK-wide one that demands 100% accuracy, Miller predicted: “It could go either way and we could end up in a compliance nightmare. A 100% requirement will also put an impossible burden on markets”.
Speaking at the Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) breakfast, Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs Richard Lochhead was more upbeat about the prospects.
Conceding that Scotland has “still got a battle to fight”, he believed the case for a separate Scottish sheep EID had gained momentum. He pointed out that the Scottish Government had invested £5m establishing a data base in Scotland and that the Commission had welcomed that.
“The Commission has differentiated between those who have a data base and those that don’t”, Mr Lochhead said.
He added that Commissioner John Dalli was in agreement with the principle that Scottish sheep farmers who use the national data base and achieve a reasonable standard of recording should not be punished under cross-compliance checks.
“I understand the anxiety among sheep farmers who feel they are being asked to perform the impossible. Well, we need an EID regime that is reasonable and proportionate – not impossible. I will do everything in my power to deliver just that”.
“Scotland has a right as a Competent Authority to implement EID separately from England and Wales. We therefore want the Commission to differentiate between the Scottish regime and what is happening elsewhere in Europe.
“We’ve invested in a good system and in these circumstances we’re not going to have our farmers put in a position where they are expected to deliver 100% accuracy”.
Earlier, the Cabinet Secretary announced that he is setting up a new forestry advisory group that will bring together forestry and farming interests. The move was in response to the farming community’s concern about the availability of land to plant the Scottish Government’s target of 100 million new trees to lock away carbon. “We need to tackle the difficult balancing act of allowing woodland cover to increase, but also ensuring food production is a key priority”.
The group will consider which types of land are best suited for tree planting in Scotland in the context of other land-based objectives. “This is the first step in delivery of the Land Use Strategy”, said Mr Lochhead, adding: “I will ask the group to look at the issues and report back to me in March 2012.”
Mr Lochhead also used the event to announce that another expert group led by former chief vet Jim Scudamore will investigate the feasibility of setting up an independent meat inspection delivery service in Scotland. Other members of that group include Pam Whittle, Sue Davies, Prof Mac Johnston and Alistair Donaldson. Welcoming the announcement, Alan Craig, president of the Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers, said: “This is an important review, the outcome of which will shape the future of meat inspection in Scotland for many years to come”.
Market round-up
United Auctions sold 813 prime lambs at Stirling yesterday to a top of £113/head and 231p/kg to average 205.7p (-4.5p on the week). There were also 305 cast sheep forward with ewes peaking at £117.50 for BFL, £111.50 Suffolk, £98.50 Mule, £96.50 Cross and £77 for Blackfaces. The Cumberland and Dumfriesshire Farmers Mart had 1867 prime lambs forward in Longtown yesterday that averaged 202.6p/kg. The sale was topped at £108.50/head and 236p/kg. There were also 343 prime hoggs that peaked at £84.50/head and 188p/kg to level at 158.2p.
The firm also had 4767 cast sheep forward when ewes were £3-£4 back on the week with heavy ewes suffering most.
Heavy ewes sold to £146.50 for Texels and averaged £91.67, while light ewes peaked at £85.50 for Cheviots and levelled at £60.03. Cast rams sold to £153.50 for Suffolks and averaged £96.41.
‘‘
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article