Laois farmers and small food producers encouraged to tap €800k fund
Farmers, artisan and small food businesses in Laois are being encouraged to tap into hundreds of thousands of euro in extra funding.
The appeal was made by Laois Offaly based Minister of State Pippa Hackett who has co-announced an additional €883,000 in funding for the LEADER Food Initiative (LFI) Scheme.
The LEADER Food Initiative opened in May 2018 as part of Ireland’s 2014 – 2020 Rural Development Programme to support the further development of food and beverage businesses throughout rural Ireland, and closed in December 2021, with 168 projects benefitting of the €15 million LFI funding allocated.
The LFI is delivered using the LEADER model and is managed by the Department of Rural and Community Development, with funding provided by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
The maximum amount of funding per project permitted under this call is €200,000 and funding proposals must not be for less than €5,000 per project. Laois Partnership is the lead agency for Laois applications.
“This funding call will support farmers and other artisan, micro and small food businesses in the Midlands and right across rural Ireland to establish sustainable routes to market and to showcase their locally grown and produced, high quality, sustainable Irish food," said Minister Hackett.
“The call is targeted at eligible small food businesses in line with a commitment in the Programme for Government to “support the small food producer, providing support for on-farm diversification enterprises and investment in local processing facilities, allowing farmers to sell their products into the local and wider domestic markets.
“Each enterprising step taken towards sustainable employment for themselves and others, no matter how small, is another thread woven into the fabric of a local community. I am delighted to be part of a Government supporting this and particularly in an area of personal interest to me; local and sustainable food. I know from my own area of the Midlands that there is a wealth of food expertise and ideas for development and I encourage all eligible producers to avail of this opportunity of support,” she said.
The maximum amount of funding per project permitted under this call is €200,000 and funding proposals must not be for less than €5,000 per project. Potential applicants are encouraged to engage with their Local Action ( Leader ) Groups with regard to the deadline for applications of 31 August 2023.
Coinciding with this announcement, Minister Heather Humphreys also extended the timeframe for approval of all LEADER funded projects from 30th August 2023 to 31st December 2023 and the completion date deadline for all projects from 31st December 2023 to the 31st March 2024.
The LEADER programme is delivered by 29 Local Action Groups (LAGs) in 28 sub-regional areas. These groups are partnerships of public and private entities from a defined geographical area. The current LEADER Programme will soon be replaced by the next iteration, LEADER Programme 2023–2027. Further information in relation to the Programme will issue in due course.