Green Cert

farmers101

Got accepted to commence the green cert. This is 2 evenings a week and a few days throughout the year. I was wondering will the green cert benefit me, I'm only 21 with no herd no, but want to start farming along side my full time job, and we have a farm at home.

Thanks for the help.

steelbar

Getting the green cert qualifies you as a "young trained farmer", which helps you qualify for any grants and schemes in the future.
There is also the tax relief in inheriting land and the young farmer top up.
It is only going to get harder to get, so the sooner you get it the better imo.

Sugarbowl

Where is your course taking place? I haven't heard about it been done as a night course, thought it was only days. Agree with what has just been said - great for grants and tax relief!

limerick farmer

Id say any grants,payments in the future will all depend on being able to supply a cert of some sort. The sprayer cert is covered by the green cert I think so you really have to get it I think.

barnaman

All above make sense just to add that Green Cert does not cover the Sprayer course; on the green cert at moment and was told you have to do that seperately. To be fair Teagasc did offer to organise it through a third party. Was 100 euros cheaper with FRS than with Teagasc crowd though to do the sprayer course!

L1985

[sorry just to add further some green certs do cover the spraying course I'm on the course now nearly finished and doing the knapsack as part of it now.the boom was extra but all we needed was the knapsack which is handy. And I think do it sooner then later as well it's getting more and more awkward to do but itl be worth it with grants etc.

mikefoxo

I thought they hadn't sorted things out yet what with the backlog of applications? Weren't they only asking people to "register their interest" in doing the course??

barnaman

What I heard was that going to move from current 18 month course to a 24 month course and that changing the course. Obviously must be extra to account for the extra 6 months! I reckon could be Sept 2016 for new course as give time to make changes and the 2015 Young Farmer Top Etc said had to be on a course by that date. Could be reading more in to it but odd that Gov picked that date and then changed the course. For knapsack did ye have to bring sprayer etc or were they provided at Ag college?

L1985

Well I'm still on the 18 month one thank god as that's taking up enough time and it's all provided by the college we don't have to bring up anything.we had the option to do the boom for an extra hundred euro but I didn't bother as I wouldn't use it.knapsacks enough for us.thats with kildalton. they are all over the place thou we were told three different things about it before they settled on us being qualified with the knapsack we do there.its handy to have it a done-get something back for my fees!!

steelbar

L1985 wrote: »

Well I'm still on the 18 month one thank god as that's taking up enough time and it's all provided by the college we don't have to bring up anything.we had the option to do the boom for an extra hundred euro but I didn't bother as I wouldn't use it.knapsacks enough for us.thats with kildalton. they are all over the place thou we were told three different things about it before they settled on us being qualified with the knapsack we do there.its handy to have it a done-get something back for my fees!!

Am doing the distance GC in Kildaton, and i cant get an answer if they are going to do the run the spray course or not for us.
Time is starting to run out so might do it locally. They will give an exemption from the module on the GC if you do the course externally

L1985

steelbar wrote: »

Am doing the distance GC in Kildaton, and i cant get an answer if they are going to do the run the spray course or not for us.
Time is starting to run out so might do it locally. They will give an exemption from the module on the GC if you do the course externally

I don't know I wouldn't pay the extra money.its literally the last thing we are doing but it depends if you need to do the boom or not as well. I'm in kildalton as well so surely everyone covers the same thing in their course?dont know if logic always applies there thou...just keep emailing them for ans and someone has to come back on it!

I'm looking at trying to do the distance education green cert myself and just wondering whats the process for applying and when does the course usually commence. There isn't much info on the website really on start times etc. Its something I've been putting off for a few years and really should have done it before.

barnaman

My expierence in 2014 was send off form and wait and see. I got accepted in Oct as was the case for 2015 applicants I believe. The course started end of Dec 2014 and start of Jan 2015. The Dec/Jan start depended on what group you were placed into; just random.

sam keane

Hey lads. I want to do the green cert. I'm teaching in Dublin but the farm is in longford. Is there anyone who managed to work it around school.