Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney has included equine breeding discussion groups in his proposed spend under the RDP, although it remains unclear how much money will be allocated to equine groups compared to mainstream agricultural enterprises such as dairy, beef and sheep.

A spokesperson for the Department of Agriculture said: “€100m is allocated for the running of all the Knowledge Transfer Groups over the lifetime over the RDP. However, allocations in relation to individual groups will only be made as the scheme design and roll out process is finalised.”

It is expected that discussion group scheme will operate for a period of three years with each participating farmer or breeder expected to attend up to five discussion group meetings per year.

Under the current model, participants receive an annual payment and are required to complete a set number of tasks each year, linked to priority areas such as animal health, welfare and breeding.

Ireland’s RDP must be approved by the European Commission but it is expected that discussion groups could be up and running by late 2014 or early 2015.