Breeds, census, hill farming & payments question

Conmaicne Mara

So, say you're a hill farmer, you graze commonage. On the census form there are three categories for Mountain, Crossbred, and Lowland types.

Got no problem with any of that.

My questions are, in the context above of being a hill farmer, what % of non Mountain breeds can a hill farmer have before maybe he is deemed not a hill farmer or payments would be affected? Obviously the farmer would need to be grazing the commonage to be paid on it.

What payment/s would be affected if that farmer went over whatever % towards lowland breeds? (I am not exactly sure where crossbreds fit into this.

foxylock

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

So, say you're a hill farmer, you graze commonage. On the census form there are three categories for Mountain, Crossbred, and Lowland types.

Got no problem with any of that.

My questions are, in the context above of being a hill farmer, what % of non Mountain breeds can a hill farmer have before maybe he is deemed not a hill farmer or payments would be affected? Obviously the farmer would need to be grazing the commonage to be paid on it.

What payment/s would be affected if that farmer went over whatever % towards lowland breeds? (I am not exactly sure where crossbreds fit into this.

I would imagine the fact that you farm a hill will define you as a hill farmer rather than the sheep breed you have. My own situation is about 90% of the sheep are hornies, but I am slowly moving towards the hiltex type ewe after putting in two texel rams this year and intending to keep the ewe lambs as replacements. I farm commonage as well as e few other acres but could'nt stock the place with suffolks as they would simply melt away in the rough grazing.

I would hate to think some lad with shiny shoes can come out and tell me what I can and can't stock on the land!! Common sense must apply. Although I realise that would contravene a lot of department work practices!!

supersean1999

sure a mayo ewe is a mountain sheep, but a cheviot mayo ewe is a cross but also a mountain sheep because both are irish hill breeds, also in reps any cross off the mountain ewe was classed as a hill sheep, for nitrates etcs etc, i stand corrected so does that mean a cheviot/charolais is classed the same as a hiltex, its just a load of **ite ,if the sheep is healthy and the farmer has 600ewes and only puts 50 different ones out each month and keeps a hill stocked, what does it matter if there crossed off a goat or a lama, more toxic rules on hills to get men off them,

Conmaicne Mara

What I am trying to establish is, if a hill farmer has a % of his flock lowland sheep, does there come a point where that is unacceptable to the Dept and they interfere with payments or other?

I'm not saying that there is or isn't, trying to establish one way or another.

supersean1999

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

What I am trying to establish is, if a hill farmer has a % of his flock lowland sheep, does there come a point where that is unacceptable to the Dept and they interfere with payments or other?

I'm not saying that there is or isn't, trying to establish one way or another.

iv no idea but as far as i know your lowland is up to your self to keep it in good gac , id say you can graze it with elephants if your land is dry enough, imo even in this country of crazy rules it will never happen that you will get fined or deducted for having hill breeds at home, i think your being to nervous con, besides a lot of mountain ewes head off to good land and grow pretty quickly and live a few happy years more on lowland,

Conmaicne Mara

I'm not being nervous, just trying to find something out. Not worried about a bit in the world.

supersean1999

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

I'm not being nervous, just trying to find something out. Not worried about a bit in the world.

thats good its to close to christmas to be stressing

foxylock

I joined AEOS 3 this year and I think there is a stipulation that sheep used to graze the hill must be cheviot or scottish blackface or a cross of either. This raises some serious questions in my mind: Why discriminate against other hill breeds like the swaledale or herdwick? Are they going to go to the trouble of genotyping all the sheep in the program? Afterall a swaledale has a blackface too!!

Another thing that gets on my t*ts is the fact that on the commonage that I keep my sheep there are over 30 shares. I have 1, roughly 5 others are being used actively, the rest are being used to claim disadvantaged payments and whatever else. Yet if I exceed my quota of sheep the lads with the shiny shoes are on my back, and all the while the heather takes over the hill the commonage is horribly undergrazed.

I recently met one shareholder in the mart, this lad has 5 shares and not a bit of wool to be seen anywhere, only thing worrying him is the threat from the dept of making everyone that owns a share to use it (possibly a good theory but in practice it will never work). I'll be f**ked he says if they're gonna make me go back to that hill. But yet he will not relinquish his shares to a young farmer who is willing to work the hill and obey the rules (no matter how ludicrous they are).

Gettin wound up now lads gonna go out for a little walk around:D:D

Conmaicne Mara

Calm down :pac: I don't want to be responsible for coronaries before Christmas I've emailed a man who should know.

foxylock

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

Calm down :pac: I don't want to be responsible for coronaries before Christmas I've emailed a man who should know.

I feel better now........ Sorry what was the question??:D:D