Horticulture & Fresh Produce News Ireland - SCHEME OF INVESTMENT AID FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMMERCIAL HORTICULTURE SECTOR - www.HortiTrends.com
SCHEME OF INVESTMENT AID FOR THE
DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMMERCIAL
HORTICULTURE SECTOR
Funded by the Irish Government under the National Development Plan 2007-2013
Terms and Conditions
3rd Round (2010)
General
This scheme is intended to assist in the development of the horticulture sector,
including beekeeping, by grant aiding capital investments in specialised plant
and equipment in commercial horticulture. The scheme aims to promote the
diversification of on-farm activities; improve the quality of products; facilitate
environmentally friendly practices and improve working conditions.
Under this scheme and subject to conditions 1-31 beneath, aid at a rate of 40%
(at a maximum rate of 50% in the case of young farmers) will be payable on the
accepted cost (excl VAT, discounts and allowances) of capital investments
approved and completed to the satisfaction of the Minister for Agriculture,
Fisheries and Food.
The scheme is primarily aimed at those in rural areas engaging in horticultural
production and/or beekeeping. Non-production investments, which are directly
associated with primary production, may also be considered.
As the funds available under the Scheme of Investment Aid for the Development
of the Commercial Horticulture Sector are limited, investments will be in
competition for grant-aid. The funding is for investments completed not later
than 15th October 2010, unless otherwise agreed. Payment claims will be
accepted prior to this date.
Application forms may be obtained from Seamus O’Donnell/Bernadette Doran
at-
Crop Production and Safety Division,
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food,
Administrative Building,
Backweston Campus,
Young’s Cross,
Celbridge,
Co. Kildare.
Ph…01 5058801 / 5058797
E-Mail Seamus.odonnell@agriculture.gov.ie
E-Mail Bernadette.doran@agriculture.gov.ie
Definitions
For the purpose of this scheme:-
“the Minister” shall mean the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
“the Department” shall mean the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and
Food.
“ horticulture” means that branch of agriculture that relates to the cultivation of
plants used for food or for the production of food or ornament, including the
technical procedures necessary for the cultivation, production and preparation for
market of -
(a) fruit,
(b) vegetables, (excluding potatoes and seed
potatoes),
(c) herbs,
(d) edible fungi,
(e) nuts,
(f) cut flowers
(g) decorative foliage
(h) hops
(i) sports turf,
(k) honey,
(l) pot plants, bedding plants and herbaceous plants
(m) nursery stock and Christmas trees),
(n) fruit trees, fruit bushes and fruit plants.
“investment” means an investment in a commercial horticultural enterprise.
CONDITIONS FOR GRANT AID UNDER THE SCHEME OF INVESTMENT
AID FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMMERCIAL HORTICULTURE
SECTOR
SPECIFIC CONDITIONS
1. Applications
• Applications should be made on an official application form. Sections
1–11 of the application form should be completed by the applicant who
should then arrange to have Section 12 completed by Teagasc or an
approved Adviser.
• The required supporting documentation e.g. business plan, latest set of
accounts and up-to-date and fully descriptive quotations showing net
cost should accompany the application which must be returned to the
address as listed on page 2 not later than Friday 19th February 2010
All quotations submitted must be original and fully descriptive. They
should be in printed format and on company headed paper.
• Only fully completed applications with all supporting documentation
will be accepted by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and
Food. Incomplete applications will not be considered for grant aid.
• Applications may be submitted by individual applicants or on behalf of
groups and other legal entities. In cases of joint or group enterprises, one
person should be nominated to apply on behalf of the enterprise. In such
cases at least one member of the enterprise must meet the eligibility
requirements.
• Applicants must demonstrate that they have the necessary skill and
competence for the running of the business. In the case of group or joint
enterprises, at least one member of the enterprise will be required to
demonstrate that they have the necessary skill and competence.
2. Eligible investments
The scheme will be confined to new investments only.
Applicants must declare where any relationship exists between the applicant
and the quoting company / supplier. The nature of this relationship must be
declared fully on both application and claim for payment forms.
3. Commencement of Work
Work on a project must not commence until after the issue of letter of
approval by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food following
the receipt of the fully completed application, otherwise the application will be
rendered ineligible for consideration.
Items invoiced or delivered, purchased or payments made before issue of
approval letter by the Department, are not eligible for grant aid. Where work
commenced before the approval date, grant aid will not be paid.
The following preparatory measures will not be deemed to constitute
commencement of work and may be undertaken whenever appropriate:
Administrative procedures aimed at obtaining planning permission, planning
work specifically carried out by for instance, an architect, preparatory studies,
site clearance and fencing.
4. Viability
The horticultural enterprise must be shown to be viable on a commercial scale.
To enable viability to be assessed, investment proposals must be supported by a
satisfactory business plan covering a minimum of two years and the most recent
set of accounts. Applications must contain a comprehensive profile of the
current and proposed enterprises, outlets, employment etc. Each project will be
assessed on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the business plan, the
latest set of accounts and the project profile submitted with the application.
5. Resale of approved equipment
Applicants will be required to keep in their ownership /possession, for a period
of 5 years, such items in respect of which grant aid has been paid.
These items must be used for horticultural purposes only.
All items grant aided must be held within the State.
6. Financing of approved items
Leasing agreements will be limited to a period of 4 years and hire purchase
agreements will not be allowed.
7. Proofs of Payment of relevant invoices
It will be a requirement for all applicants to submit proofs of payment that are
acceptable to the Minister. These proofs will consist of original bank
statements and copies of encashed cheques. Alternatively, on line bank
statements (only high quality colour printouts with bank logo) with copies of
encashed cheques will be acceptable or if payment is made by direct credit
transfer an original bank statement or on-line bank statement listing payments to
the supplier must be submitted.
Amounts listed on bank statements must be clearly linked to the relevant
item on which grant aid is claimed.
8. Scale of Investments
The minimum investment which will be considered for grant aid is €10,000,
except in the case of beekeeping for which a minimum investment of €2,000
will apply. The upper cumulative limit for investments per applicant over the
period of the scheme 2007-2013 is €5m. Aid for each investment will be
decided on the availability of funds and on the ongoing priorities for each sector
within the industry as well as the quality and scale of the proposals. In some
cases only part of an investment may be approved for aid.
9. Rate of Grant
Aid will be payable at the maximum rate of 40% (at a maximum rate of 50% in
the case of young farmers) on the accepted net cost of investments approved
and completed to the satisfaction of the Minister. The amount on which the
grant is calculated will, however, not exceed the actual net expenditure
incurred, (excl. VAT, discounts and allowances), and paid for by the applicant.
To qualify for the higher rate of grant aid on the basis of being a young farmer,
the applicant will have to be under 35 years of age on the date of receipt of a
valid application by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
Such applicant’s must submit an original birth certificate with their
application.
To qualify for payment of grant aid at the 50% rate an applicant will have
to be in a position to demonstrate, by the date of application for payment of
aid, that they are in control of financial management of the grant aided
enterprise.
7
In the case of applications made by people operating in partnership or
where more than one person has joint interest in the business the higher
rate of aid will only be payable where all parties are under 35 years on the
date of receipt of valid application.
A company or corporate body will not qualify for the higher rate.
10. Limitations
• Only new materials and/or new specialised horticultural plant/equipment
will be grant aided. Aid will not be paid for secondhand equipment,
materials or replacements, except in very exceptional circumstances to
be determined by the Minister.
• Aid will not be paid for repair and maintenance.
• No aid will be paid for projects which commence before issue of letter
of approval by the Department.
• In the case of investments for buildings, the applicant must show details
of ownership of the site or it’s long-term lease (5 years from 1st January
2010)
• Projects which aim to increase production for which no sales outlets can
be found will not be grant aided.
11. Aid from Other Sources
If any contribution towards the cost of approved works has been or may be
made from public funds, otherwise than under this scheme, the amount of aid
under the scheme may, where the Minister so determines, be reduced
accordingly.
Investment in mushroom enterprises which are eligible for consideration
for aid under the EU Producers Organisation Scheme will not be grant
aided under this Scheme
An applicant must notify the Department if Business Expansion Scheme
or Seed Capital Scheme investments have been raised and also declare the
amount raised. Where funds have been raised grant aid will be reduced
by 20% in the case of applicants in assisted areas and by 50% in non
assisted regions.
12 Competitiveness of Applications
Projects will be assessed for aid on a priority basis and the fact that a project is
aided does not create entitlement for similar projects in this or any future round
of the scheme. Priorities may change with time or circumstances.
13. Completion of Investments/ Deadline for submission of claim for payment
Approved investments must be completed and a claim for grant aid made within
the period stipulated by the Minister.
Fully completed claims for payment should be submitted as soon as
possible but must be received in the Department not later than
15th October 2010 unless otherwise agreed. Claims for payment
will be accepted prior to this date.
14. Legal Provisions, Consents, etc.
All applicants must undertake to comply with all National and EU Community
standards in respect of the investments approved under the scheme.
It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that all works shall be carried out in
accordance with the provisions of all relevant statutes, regulations, byelaws and
duty of care.
The onus of obtaining all consents, permissions, etc. including planning
permission, consent to entry on, or interference with, land, other property or
right of any other persons, rests on the applicant.
It will be a requirement for an applicant, where as a producer in the food chain,
to register with this Department under EU Regulations, ie Regulation (EC) No
852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the hygiene of
foodstuffs.
Payment of grant aid is subject to compliance with statutory requirements in
relation to the pay and working conditions of employees.
Payment of grant aid by the Minister should not be taken as evidence of
compliance with the above legal provisions, consents, etc.
15. Contractors Tax Clearance Requirements
In conformity with general practice the payment of financial aid as provided for
in this scheme is subject to the condition that, where a contractor is employed to
carry out construction work, that contractor must have a current C2 certificate
or tax clearance certificate from the Revenue Commissioners.
In the case of a non-resident contractor a general tax clearance certificate will
be required. This provision applies whether or not the non-resident contractor
has a registered office in this country.
16. Payment of Tax by Applicant
In the case of grant awards in excess of €10,000 the applicant must submit a
current Tax Clearance Certificate. This certificate should be submitted as
soon as possible but not later than the date of application for payment of
grant aid.
General Conditions
17. Unsuccessful Projects
Where eligible projects have not been approved for grant aid and have not
commenced, applicants may re-apply for consideration in the next round of
applications under the scheme subject to terms and conditions of the scheme at
that time.
18. Information
Applicants must provide any information required by the Minister for the
administration, control, monitoring and evaluation of the scheme.
19. Justification for Granting Aid
Aid for investment will at all times be subject to the condition that, in the
opinion of the Minister the investment is justified. However, the approval for, or
payment of aid, does not imply any endorsement by the Minister of a project’s
safety, technical feasibility and/or economic viability.
20. Right of Entry
The Minister reserves the right to arrange for an inspection at all reasonable
times of any land, premises, plant, equipment and records of participants or
applicants for participation in this scheme.
The applicant or a person nominated by the applicant must make himself or
herself available to the Department Inspector in order to carry out the necessary
inspections.
21. Responsibility of Applicant
The approval or payment of aid under the scheme does not imply the acceptance
by the Minister of any responsibility as regards the stability of any structure, or
the soundness of any materials used or adequacy for its purposes of any
investment, which is the subject of such approval or payment. This is the
applicant’s responsibility in the first instance and the onus is on him/her to
comply with current requirements as regards Health and Safety.
The Minister may require certification of quality of work and design.
22. Protection of the Environment
To ensure protection of the environment, applicants:
• Must agree to farm in accordance with the criteria for Good Agricultural and
Environmental Condition (GAEC). They must also participate in the
appropriate Bord Bia Quality Programmes or recognised equivalent,
including the environment and hygiene standards set out therein.
• May be required to make investments or to carry out additional requirements
over and above that covered in their initial applications e.g. investment in
hygiene or pollution control. Such additional works will not be grant aided.
• May, without prejudice to paras. 17 & 19 be refused grant aid where the
Minister is of the opinion that the works proposed to be carried out would
cause damage to the environment – in particular to environmentally sensitive
areas or to a structure or area of historical or archaeological importance.
23. False Statements
Without prejudice to penalties applicable under national law, if, for the purposes
of obtaining aid under this scheme, a person knowingly makes a false statement
or withholds essential information, all or such portion of the aid given or to be
given as the Minister may determine shall be reimbursed or withheld. The
Minister reserves the right to exclude such a person from further participation in
the scheme for such a period as she/he shall determine.
24. Withdrawal of Aid
The Minister may withdraw approval of aid if the applicant fails to abide by the
conditions of the scheme. In such event all or such portion of aid given or to be
given shall be reimbursed or withheld as the Minister may determine.
25. Recovery of Aid
The Minister reserves the right to recover any grant aid paid where the
investment aided does not continue to be used for horticultural purposes for a
period of at least 5 years,
26. Review of Financial Aids
The Minister reserves the right to vary, where occasion so demands, the amount
of financial aid specified in the scheme subject at all times to the provision of
any relevant European Union legislation.
27. Procedures
The Minister shall lay down the procedures to be followed in the operation of
this scheme and reserves the right to alter these procedures from time to time.
28. Conditions of Approval
Every approval of development works and purchases under this scheme shall be
subject to all conditions laid down by the Minister being complied with in full
by the applicant.
29. Charges for Visits and Services
The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food reserves the right to impose
a charge for visits made, and services provided, by its officials in connection
with the scheme.
30. Decision of the Minister
The decision of the Minister on any matter relating to this scheme or to any
works there under shall be final.
31. Additional Conditions
The Minister may at any time lay down additional conditions for the
implementation of this scheme.
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