The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, has today announced a short extension to the Horticulture Exceptional Payment Scheme (HEPS). The Scheme will now close at midnight on Friday 24 June, 2022. It had been due to close at midnight this Friday 17 June.
HEPS which opened earlier this month, will provide support in the form of a once-off payment to growers in the critically important Irish horticulture sector.
The subsectors at most risk and included under this Scheme include commercial growers in the glasshouse high-wire crops, field vegetable, mushroom and apple sectors. It is designed to ensure the short-term security and thus the long-term viability of these sectors.
The support measure which is worth €2.8 million is funded from Ireland’s allocation for exceptional adjustment aid to producers in agricultural sectors which have been impacted by Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, as announced by the European Commission on 23 March.
Applicants are reminded to familiarise themselves with the Scheme Terms & Conditions and Frequently Asked Questions which answer the most common queries which are available on the department’s website. Completed Application forms and supporting documentation should be emailed to heps@agriculture.gov.ie by midnight on Friday, 24 June 2022.
