Minister Heydon announces availability of voluntary ACRES Training courses
- Foilsithe: 30 Meán Fómhair 2025
- An t-eolas is déanaí: 30 Meán Fómhair 2025
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD, announced today that participants who entered the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) under Tranche 1 may now avail of a voluntary ACRES training course under the ACRES Training Scheme (ATS).
Making the announcement, the Minister commented:
“Participation in ACRES is for five years and I am pleased to tell farmers who entered the Scheme in 2023 that they may now avail of an ACRES training course mid-way through this participation to get information on the ongoing management of their land in ACRES. More than 97% of all ACRES participants are now fully paid in respect of their participation in the Scheme in 2023 and 2024 and, for those in receipt of results-based payments, this is an opportunity for them to learn more about the scorecards used to assess their lands when scoring and to learn about ways to improve overall score. For those in the ACRES Co-operation approach, it is also a timely opportunity for them to get information on Non-Productive Investments and/or Landscape Actions which may also assist them to improve the overall score of their holdings.”
Minister Heydon continued:
“While the content of the course will be different, the format of the course is the same as the mandatory course ACRES participants had to attend in their first year. While the voluntary course is only available to Tranche 1 participants this year, Tranche 2 participants will be able to avail of it in 2026 as that will be their third year in ACRES. I encourage Tranche 1 farmers to contact an approved ACRES Trainer, a list of whom is available on my Department’s website, to arrange attendance at a voluntary ACRES training course which will be available to them up to and including 31 December 2025.”
Notes
- The Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES) requires all ACRES participants to attend a mandatory ACRES Training course in their first year of participation in ACRES, and participants may subsequently avail of a voluntary ACRES Training Course in their third year in ACRES.
- The ACRES Training Scheme, which is a separate intervention in Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan 2023-2027, provides the framework for the provision of the ACRES training courses.
- The ACRES Training Scheme is jointly funded by the European Union and the National Exchequer under Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan 2023-2027.
- The ACRES Training Courses are created and provided by approved ACRES Trainers, a list of whom is maintained on the Department’s website.
- The Terms and Conditions of the ACRES Training Scheme, which include provisions about duration, payments and timelines for submission of scheme documentation, are available on the Department’s website at ACRES Training Scheme (ATS)