Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD, announced today that the application system for Non-Productive Investments (NPIs), available to farmers participating in the co-operation approach of the Agri-Climate Rural Environment Scheme (ACRES), has re-opened.
Announcing the re-opening, Minister Heydon said:
“There are a number of innovative elements within ACRES, one of which is the
availability of support for a range of voluntary complementary environmental actions which ACRES Co-operation farmers may apply for. Non-Productive Investments (NPIs) are voluntary actions which an ACRES Co-operation may undertake on their own holding to support them in the management of their holding and enhance the environmental standard of the land in question. An improvement in the environmental standard can in turn result in the land meriting a higher score when assessed and translate into a higher rate of payment under the results-based payment approach in ACRES.”
Minister Heydon continued
“This is the fourth application window for NPIs and the same application process is in place as for the previous application windows in 2023, 2024 and last year. I encourage ACRES Co-operation farmers to engage with their ACRES Advisor to look at the NPIs available and the way in which some of those actions could address issues impacting their score as it is the ACRES Advisor who submits the NPI application on their behalf. This year’s application window is opening a month earlier than last year’s and coincides with ACRES advisors being out assessing and scoring lands for ACRES payments. There has been a good uptake of NPIs so far and I consider that ACRES Co-operation farmers should again look at the options available to them in the form of NPIs so that NPI applications may be prepared and submitted this year by the closing date of 14 October 2026.”
In relation to the uptake of NPIs so far, the Minister noted that just under €8.5 million has already been paid out to date in respect of the implementation of the NPIs approved from the 2023 and 2024 application windows, with more to be paid out upon the implementation of those approved from the 2025 application window.
The Minister concluded by drawing the attention of the farmers concerned and their ACRES Advisors to the publication of updated specifications for the implementation of approved NPIs. He advised that ACRES Co-operation participants for whom NPIs are approved must adhere to the requirements set out in the ACRES Co-operation Non-Productive Investments Specification document Version 2.2 of July 2026, which is available on the Department’s website at ACRES Co-operation - NPI Specifications Version 2-2. He added that a Circular giving a summary of the changes will be sent to ACRES Advisors for information and will also be published on the Department’s website.
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