The Agriculture Minister Michael Creed has extended a scheme to help those affected by the fodder crisis.

He has expanded the duration of both the fodder import and fodder transport support measures for an additional week.

These were scheduled to conclude on Monday April 30th, and will now run until Monday 7th May.

On the extension, Minister Creed said: ''While the weather has improved and grass growth continues to improve significantly, there are farmers in some parts of the country who still need to locate fodder for their animals.

"Having reviewed the situation and listened to the views of members of the representative fodder group, established in March, I have decided that extending the closing date for the two measures for one further week is appropriate".

The department says demand for fodder has reduced significantly.

But it says there are still some areas where land is not yet sufficiently dry to graze livestock, and there is still a short-term demand for fodder.

The measures were brought in earlier this month after months of wet weather.