More than 2,000 sheep farmers in the State who are being investigated for serious irregularities in their ewe premium claims have not received any payments from the Department of Agriculture.
And an unknown number of flock owners, of the 36,300 who already have received the first instalment of the ewe premium, face penalties for discrepancies in their claims, it has emerged.
The Department said it will be at least December before the full detail of its investigation into discrepancies in ewe premium claims will become known.
It launched the investigation in May last as the foot-and-mouth crisis eased and it became clear that there were major irregularities involving overclaiming of the ewe premium in flocks slaughtered because of the crisis.
The speed at which the depopulation took place and the restriction on all movement of animals meant that those involved in premium fraud were unable to substitute ewes from other flocks to cover up.
As a result, in the Cooley area alone, claims for more than 6,625 ewes which did not exist were investigated and as a result of the Department's investigation, 23 people are expected to appear in court to face criminal charges.
The Department has extended the investigation to the rest of the State. Indicating the seriousness of the situation, 2,000 flock owners are having payments withheld.
The Department had written to 4,281 farmers in July, asking them to account for their ewes, which they should have retained on their farms for 100 days after they made their claim.
The letter caused outrage in the farming community and the Irish Farmers Association said it was outraged by the accusatory tone of the letter.
As a result of the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, the tagging of all sheep in the country was introduced, despite the opposition of the main farming organisation.
The individual identification of sheep will be a major step forward in traceability and guaranteed food safety and will help prevent fraud in the future, according to the Department of Agriculture.