DAFM issued payments for 222 Kerry Cattle calves in 2024
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) issued payments for over 200 Kerry Cattle calves last year in a bid to support breeders.
A native Irish breed, Kerry Cattle are believed to be one of the oldest breeds in Europe.
The cows were bred mainly for milk production, and at one stage it was the dominant breed in Ireland.
However, it is now a breed considered to be seriously at risk, as farmers have moved to alternative breeds for economic reasons.
In a parliamentary question, Labour Party TD Robert O'Donoghue asked for an update on the development of Kerry Cattle herds in Ireland and what financial supports exist for breeders.
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon, explained that Kerry Cattle are designated by his department as a native rare breed and are the only native rare breed of cattle linked to a specific geographic location.
The Kerry herd book was first established by the RDS in the 1880s before being taken over by the Kerry Cattle Society in 2001.
"This society is a recognised breed society by my department and is approved to maintain a breeding programme for the breed in accordance with EU Animal Breeding Regulations," the minister said.
In 1982, the Department of Agriculture first introduced a scheme of payments for maintaining purebred Kerry cattle.
Minister Heydon explained that there were several reasons for the introduction of the payments:
- The conservation of genetic resources with the breed which is critically endangered;
- The cultural cost to society of the breed becoming extinct;
- The overall cost of the programme to save the breed, in the context of cultural and the preservation of genetic resources, was considered effective use of exchequer funds.
"My department has continued with this measure to support and encourage breeders of Kerry Cattle.
"The objective of the current scheme is to encourage the maintenance of a number of separate herds of Kerry Cattle in Ireland and the creation and maintenance of a sufficient reserve of purebred breeding stock," Minister Heydon said.
The amount paid in the scheme from 2020-2024 was €120/eligible calf.
Last year, 29 farmers were paid a total of €24,360 for 222 calves. The average Kerry Cattle herd size was seven animals.
| Year | Farmers paid | Number of calves paid on | Average herd size | Total grant amount paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 30 | 215 | 7 | €25,800 |
| 2021 | 29 | 196 | 7 | €23,520 |
| 2022 | 31 | 184 | 6 | €21,600 |
| 2023 | 26 | 156 | 6 | €21,960 |
| 2024 | 29 | 222 | 7 | €24,360 |
The minister added that the Kerry Cow is listed under the rare breed options under the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES).
Payment under the scheme is €200 per livestock unit (LU)/year, up to a maximum of 20 LU.
"Participants are only required that their breeding females produce at least one registered offspring before the end of the five-year contract. A bonus of €75 is to be paid for additional progeny registered," the minister said.
However, one Kerry Cattle breeder told Agriland that they are still waiting on rare breed payments under ACRES.
Minister Heydon also said that the Rare Breed Conservation Grant is available to breed societies, currently set at a maximum of €1,000 annually, to assist them in the preservation and in the operation of the respective rare breed breeding book.
"Officials of my department have met with the Kerry Cattle Society to explore opportunities for assisting the breed," he added.
