Spring 2002

In this issue:

The Product Liability (Amendment) Act

This recently passed piece of legislation has consequences for growers and it is important that you are aware of the implications of this Act.

The Product Liability Directive (85/374/EEC) introduced a system of strict liability for products that do not provide the level of safety which people are generally entitled to expect. This meant that a person injured by a defective product could sue for damages, providing it could be proven that the product was defective and the product had caused the injury.

Until 1999 the Directive did not apply to producers of primary agriculture products. An amending Directive was adopted in 1999 to extend the scope of the original Directive to such primary producers. This European Community requirement has to be implemented in Northern Ireland. Accordingly, the Northern Ireland Assembly has recently passed the Product Liability (Amendment) Act.

The effect of the Act is to make producers, including farmers and fruit or vegetable growers, liable to a claim for damages in respect of injury caused by any defective product supplied by them. Importers of primary products from non-EU countries will be liable as producers. Others in the food chain, such as processors, are already subject to this legislation.

Summary of the Act

A person can sue under the Act for compensation for:

death
personal injury
private property (this could cover a product which had to be withdrawn from sale due to the fault)

There is no financial limit to a producer's total liability.

Defences

The producer or importer can avoid liability if he can prove any of the following:

he did not supply the product
the state of scientific and technical knowledge at the time he supplied the product meant that the producer could not be expected to have discovered the defect
the defect was the inevitable consequence of complying with the law
the defect was not in the product at the time it was supplied
(if he supplied the product to be used in another product) the defect was due either to the make up of the finished product, or to defective specifications given by the producer of the finished product

Time limit for bringing a claim

A plaintiff must begin his court action within three years of the date he was injured by the product or, if later, the date when he knew he had a claim against the defendant. He/she cannot sue under this legislation for injury when ten years have elapsed since the defective product was supplied by the producer.

Many producers are likely to already carry product liability cover. However, there may be some producers who do not have such cover and should review their position given this change in the law. If you have any doubts about your insurance cover consult your insurance company.

Why do I need a spraying course?

It’s the law

All those who handle or use pesticides have obligations under the law. Two main pieces of legislation – The Food and Environment Act and the Control of Pesticides Regulations, largely govern how pesticides can be handled, stored and disposed off.

From a grower’s perspective the law demands that that anyone born after 31 December 1964 who uses pesticides (pesticides means chemicals and micro – organisms used as herbicides, insecticides or fungicides) must hold a recognised Certificate of Competence – unless directly supervised by someone who holds such a certificate.

Due diligence

Apart from breaking the law if you spray without holding the relevant Certificate, you have no defence if for any reason damage to another person or that person’s property or crop occurs because of the spray or spraying technique. Without a Certificate of Competence you would be deemed incompetent to carry out spraying – never mind the fact that you’ve been doing it for years! To demonstrate due diligence in a court of law you must have been trained and hold a certificate of competence for the task concerned.

Quality assurance

Quality assurance schemes such as Assured Produce require that all sprayer operatives hold the appropriate certificates. Increasingly customers are demanding a higher standard from their suppliers and to remain competitive in the market place you need to conform to these standards.

Improved spray efficiency

Apart from the foundation course (PA1), which is largely theoretical, the courses concentrate on aspects such as calibration, nozzle selection, and calculation of sprayer output and correct operation of the sprayer. This knowledge can lead to greater efficiency and less waste of expensive chemicals through the ability to calculate accurately the amount required for any given area.

How to get a certificate

To achieve the Certificate of Competence growers need to undertake training and pass a test.

Growers must complete the PA1 foundation course on Safe Handling of Pesticides and pass the test. Depending on type of sprayer used there will be at least one more course and test to undertake (see table 1). These courses are administered by the National Proficiency Test Council (NPTC) and growers then register with the NPTC to receive their Certificates.

Table 1 FEPA courses : Title and Content

PA1
Foundation Module

PA2a
Ground crop sprayer – mounted or trailed. Hydraulic nozzle type or rotary atomiser type – boom

PA6a
Hand held applicators – Hydraulic nozzle type or rotary atomiser type

PA3
Broadcast or variable geometry boom sprayer mounted or trailed

PA6d
Hand held applicators – requiring minimal calibration

PA9
Fogging misting and smokes (including formaldehyde)

Notes:

all candidates must purchase an assessment schedule. Once purchased the schedule can then be used for further module assessments.
all candidates must complete training in PA1 foundation module before further specialisation.
all candidates must successfully pass the assessment for PA1 foundation module before they can be assessed in any other module.

Training and testing

Training and testing is organised by Dundonald House. The instructors on the course are practical people, mainly farmers, who understand how to impart knowledge in plain language.

Once you have completed the course you need to apply for the test which is largely practical and on a one-to one basis with an assessor. The examiners are trained to assess accurately and fairly.

What does it cost?

Training for growers is free, but all participants must purchase an Assessment Schedule and pay for tests. The tests costs are shown in table 2.

Table 2 FEPA Courses : Costs

FEPAModule	Farmers and Growers			Other trainees
	Assessment Schedule	Training cost	Assessment cost	Assessment Schedule	Training cost	Assessment cost
PA1	£34	£0	£31	£34	£45	£31
PA2a	-	£0	£62	-	£45	£62
PA6a	-	£0	£31	-	£45	£31
PA3	-	£0	£62	-	£45	£62
PA6d	-	£0	£31	-	£23	£31
PA9	-	£0	£31	-	£23	£31

For further information contact Gary Haslem at Greenmount Campus Telephone 028 9442 6816. E-mail : gary.haslem@dardni.gov.uk

Funding opportunities for horticulture producers

The current round of EU Structural Funds, aimed at reinforcing progress towards a peaceful and stable society and promoting reconciliation, will be administered through the following programmes:

EU Programme for Peace and Reconciliation in Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland (PEACE II Programme)
LEADER plus
Programme for Building Sustainable Prosperity

The PEACE II Programme runs from 2002 to 2004 and will be delivered through a number of measures. We, in DARD Agri-Food Development Service, are the ‘Implementing Body’ for four measures. This means that we are responsible for ensuring that these measures within the programme are delivered, the targets met and the money administered appropriately. The team set up within DARD Agri-Food Development Service to administer PEACE II funding under these measures is the Peace II Co-ordination Team (PCT).

The measures to be implemented by DARD Agri-Food Development Service are:

Measure 1.6 Training for Farmers (including Focus Farms, ICT training and Group Facilitation)
Measure 1.7(a) Obtaining Alternative Employment (including re-skilling and diversification)
Measure 1.9 Investment in Agricultural Holdings (Investment on-farm to improve quality of farm produce and or niche market opportunities)
Measure 5.6(b) Cross Border Co-operation (cross border diversification projects

Who is eligible?
All farmers, their spouses and members of the farm family, who are dependent on the farm for all or part of their income, are eligible for different parts of this programme. Both full-time and part-time farmers are eligible.

How will applications be made?
The application process will, in most cases, be made electronically via the joint website for both programmes (www.eugrants.org

) The application process will be a two stage process: Part A will request generic information required for EU monitoring purposes and Part B will request Measure specific project information.

How and by whom will the programme be delivered?
Under PEACE II, there is an ethos of delivery at local level and the DARD measures encourage participation and delivery by farmers and local regional project promoters (organisations based in local areas who will be responsible for delivery of projects).

The Public will be alerted to the opening of each of the measures via the local and national press and also through the EU Grants website.

For further details on the measures, or any aspect of the Programme, please contact the PCT Admin Team at Room 6 Magnet House 81-93 York Road, Belfast. (Tel:028 9054 7111) E-mail : peaceapps.afds@dardni.gov.uk

Programme for Building Sustainable Prosperity (BSP)

The Building Sustainable Prosperity (BSP) supports and encourages people working and living in rural areas to develop initiatives. The aim is to improve and develop rural communities, economically, socially, culturally and environmentally, for the good of these communities. The BSP programme is open to groups of 8 or more individuals, which are legally constituted e.g. Producer group / Association or Co-operatives.

Groups can apply under a series of appropriate measures for financial assistance to develop projects that address their identified needs. This support will be delivered for a range of activities by Rural Development Division, DARD, e.g. setting up farm relief and business management services, development and improvement of infrastructure connected with development of horticulture and protection of the environment.

Groups have to prepare their own project plans and implementation schedule with up to 50 percent assistance given to eligible capital works and up to 100 percent assistance towards networking, minor infrastructure and administration expenses.

Explanation notes and application forms are available for completion on-line at www.eugrants.org

LEADER plus

LEADER plus will assist businesses to focus on the adoption of new technologies, improving the quality of life in rural areas and adding value to local products. LEADER plus has the primary objective to increase the economic and employment contribution that very small businesses including farm families make to the rural economy. If a horticulture business has identified new technology and proposes to adopt it, LEADER plus could support the project.

Any individual or group with a project which they feel could be supported by LEADER plus should contact the Local Action Group (LEADER company) in their area. These groups are usually closely linked to the local District Council, although in some areas several councils have come together to form a company. There are 12 LEADER companies in Northern Ireland with approximately £20m in total of funds.

Each LEADER company will have individual strategies with a range of themes and measures relating to this strategy. The measures each company has in place will determine the support that can be given to applicants.

If you require any further information on potential funding opportunities or horticulture diversification in general, please contact Rural Enterprise Division, Tel: 028 9052 4406 or visit our website at www.ruralni.gov.uk/farmdiversification

Minimum rates of wages

The minimum rates of wages specified by the Agricultural Wages Board for workers in agriculture and horticulture in Northern Ireland from 4 March 2002 are as follows:

Age	Rate (£) per 5 day week (39 hours)	Rate (£) per day	Rate (£) per hour	Overtime rate (£) per hour
19 years and over	182.17	36.43	4.67	7.01
18	154.84	30.97	3.97	5.96
17	127.52	25.50	3.27	4.91
16	109.30	21.86	2.80	4.20
15 and under	91.08	18.22	2.34	3.51

The new rates are specified in the Board’s Order No.81, which relates solely to this matter, as there are no other changes in working conditions. The Order is now available from the Stationery Office Bookshop, 16, Arthur Street, Belfast. BT1 4GD.

Growers who are employing or intend to employ seasonal agricultural workers (SAWS) must use these rates.

Further information on Agricultural Wages Board Orders is available from:

The Agricultural Wages Board Secretariat
Room 910
Dundonald House
Upper Newtownards Road
BELFAST
BT4 3SB
Tel: 028 9052 0813 or 028 9052 4492
Fax: 028 9052 4266