O’Donoghue: Forgotten Farmer scheme "excludes many of the very farmers it was meant to help.”

Independent Ireland General Secretary Richard O’Donoghue TD has written to the Minister for Agriculture to highlight serious flaws in the new Forgotten Farmer scheme, warning that the current criteria will “once again exclude many of the very farmers it was meant to help.”

Deputy O’Donoghue said that while the introduction of the scheme was intended to address a long-standing injustice, overly restrictive conditions and a rushed application process mean it risks repeating the same mistakes of the past.

“The idea of the Forgotten Farmer scheme was to give fair treatment to those who missed out on vital entitlements and supports,” he said. “But the way it has been designed means that farmers who started in 2008, 2009, 2010 and therafter – who also never received payments or installation aid – are still being shut out. They have been forgotten twice.”

Deputy O’Donoghue also criticised the “no older than 40 in 2015” age limit, pointing out that it penalises farmers who started later in life but are still genuine cases.

“The reality on the ground is that some people enter farming later for family or economic reasons, but they are still building a future in agriculture. They deserve to be included,” he said.

The Limerick County TD added that the three-week application window – during peak summer holiday season – is “farcical” and is preventing many eligible farmers from applying.

“Farmers can’t get the required paperwork from accountants, solicitors or agricultural colleges when they are closed or on holidays, and even when they have everything in place, they are facing issues with the AgFood.ie system. This needs an urgent fix and an extension to the deadline,” he said.

Deputy O’Donoghue called on the Minister to widen the eligibility criteria to cover all genuine forgotten farmers, extend the application deadline well beyond the summer holiday period and to ensure the process is accessible and realistic for farmers and their advisors.

“If we want to encourage the next generation into farming, we have to start by rectifying the injustices faced by previous generations. This scheme should be about fairness and inclusion – not about creating a new group of forgotten farmers,” Deputy O’Donoghue said.