New €22m national sheep welfare scheme launched

Participants in the 2025 scheme will be required to complete three out of five proposed actions to receive full payment of €13 per ewe.

The actions are separated between category A and category B. Farmers must complete two of the category A options and one of the category B options to ensure full payment from the National Sheep Welfare Scheme.

Category A mandatory actions are each worth €4 per breeding ewe. The actions to choose from are shearing, body condition scoring of ewes with appropriate follow-on management, and clostridial vaccination of ewes.

Category B actions are each worth €5 per breeding ewe, which are foot bathing of breeding ewes and plunge dipping to control external parasites.

Launching the scheme, agriculture minister Martin Heydon said: “The scheme launched today is separate from but complements the multi-annual Sheep Improvement Scheme [SIS] funded under Ireland’s CAP Strategic Plan until 2027. 

The SIS supports farmers carrying out actions that improve animal health and welfare on their sheep enterprises, with a budget allocation of €100m. Approximately 16,000 farmers received payments totalling €18m for participating in the first year of the SIS. 

"Under the 2024 National Sheep Welfare Scheme, just over €15m was paid to more than 16,300 farmers who completed the required actions.” 

IFA sheep chairman Adrian Gallagher said: “Combined with the SIS, it brings targeted payments for ewes to €25/ewe, which is critical for the longer-term viability and sustainability of the sheep sector.

“IFA has secured these payments for sheep farmers following years of campaigning for support for the sector. It’s important all sheep farmers apply to this scheme this year to ensure the full allocation is drawn down by the sheep sector as we seek to build on these supports in coming years."

Farmers interested in applying for the National Sheep Welfare Scheme must apply online or through an approved FAS adviser before midnight on May 15.