Hectare limits
You must enter a minimum of 1 hectare of land for each option (conversion or maintenance). There is no upper limit to the area entered into RDCs but the maximum area of land eligible for payment is 1,000 hectares for conversion and 1,000 hectares for maintenance. Within this 1,000 hectare limit, up to 300 hectares of arable land, improved grassland or fruit and vegetable land, or a combination of these land types is eligible for payment.
Note - these hectare limits apply to Rural Development Contracts only, any land currently under the Organic Aid Scheme (OAS) will not count towards the total hectare limits, although any land under the OAS cannot be entered into RDCs until the OAS contract expires.
Eligible land
Fields containing trees may be included provided the density of the trees is low enough to allow cropping or grazing in the same way as on similar fields without trees. Unusable areas, e.g. woodland, roads, yards, buildings, ponds, cannot be claimed or declared as eligible land under the organic measure of Rural Development Contracts.
You must ensure ineligible areas, e.g. rocky outcrops and buildings, forming part of the total area are also deducted. It is your responsibility to deduct any ineligible land from your application. You can, however, include areas which are uncultivated as a result of normal agricultural operations, e.g. tractor turning areas, narrow field margins, headlands, hedges, where this is justified, but these cannot be more than 2 metres wide.
Compatibility with the Organic Aid Scheme
Land that is currently under an Organic Aid Scheme (OAS) agreement cannot receive support under Rural Development Contracts (RDCs). However, once an OAS agreement is completed land can be entered into the maintenance element of RDCs. Providing the five year agreements do not overlap you may wish to plan ahead and apply for RDCs organic maintenance in the final year of your OAS agreement. For example: if your OAS agreement is scheduled to end on 31 August 2009, you may wish to apply to RDCs earlier in 2009 for the land to enter RDCs on 1 January 2010.