Provision with respect to cattle4
1
The number of breeding cows in respect of which a compensatory allowance may be paid in relation to any Scheme year shall be the least of–
a
the number of breeding cows comprised in the herd on the qualifying day for that Scheme year;
b
the number of breeding cows held by the claimant on eligible land, or on eligible land and other land used with it, for a period of four months from the day following the qualifying day for that Scheme year;
c
the number of breeding cows which, in the opinion of the appropriate Minister, is reasonable, having regard to the number of calves produced in the twelve months preceding the qualifying day for that Scheme year or, in the case of a herd newly established or re–established in that year, in such shorter period as the appropriate Minister may determine; or
d
the number of breeding cows which, when added to the number of ewes in a qualified flock grazed and maintained on eligible land available to the claimant’s herd and, as the case may be, flock in the year preceding that Scheme year (being land which was included in an area aid application made under Commission Regulation 3887/92 in that preceding year and was determined by the appropriate Minister to be eligible forage area for the purposes of that Regulation or is relevant afforested land) is equivalent to 1.4 livestock units per hectare of that eligible land.
2
A compensatory allowance for cattle shall not be paid in respect of any breeding cow the use of which for breeding would not, in the opinion of the appropriate Minister, be in accordance with sound husbandry practice.
3
Where in any Scheme year a claimant uses unsuitable supplementary feeding methods the appropriate Minister may reduce or withhold the compensatory allowance for cattle otherwise payable to him in respect of that Scheme year in accordance with paragraph (4).
4
Where the claimant was not penalised under this regulation for using unsuitable supplementary feeding methods in the preceding Scheme year the compensatory allowance for cattle otherwise payable to him may be reduced by 10%; where the claimant was penalised under this regulation for using unsuitable supplementary feeding methods in the preceding Scheme year but not in the Scheme year preceding that one the compensatory allowance for cattle otherwise payable to him may be reduced by 20%; and where the claimant has been penalised under this regulation for using unsuitable supplementary feeding methods in each of the two preceding Scheme years the compensatory allowance for cattle otherwise payable to him may be withheld.
5
Where, in the opinion of the appropriate Minister, an appreciable quantity of milk has been produced by a regular breeding herd in the period of 12 months immediately preceding the qualifying day and has been sold or used for the manufacture of milk products for sale, a compensatory allowance shall be payable in relation to the Scheme year relevant to that qualifying day in respect of the number of breeding cows comprised in the herd on that day, reduced by such number as appears to the appropriate Minister to be the number of cows in the herd required to produce that quantity of milk in that period.