Organic Farming Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2001 (S.R. No. 5 of 2001).

These Regulations provide for the payment of aid to farmers who undertake to introduce organic farming methods and comply with certain environmental management conditions, pursuant to Article 22 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1257/1999. Such aid is part of the rural development plan relating to Northern Ireland submitted by the United Kingdom to the European Commission pursuant to Article 41 of the Rural Development Regulation and which was approved by the Commission on 4th December 2000. These Regulations implement certain provisions of Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1750/1999 laying down detailed rules for the application of the Rural Development Regulation. The Regulations: (a) enable the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to make payments of aid, subject to specified conditions, and specify the rate of aid (regs. 3 and 4); (b) specify the conditions of eligibility to be satisfied by applicants for aid (reg. 5), certain procedural and formal preconditions for the acceptance of applications for aid (regs. 6 and 9), and certain restrictions on the payment of aid (reg. 7); etc..