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While the volume of cattle produced in Ireland this year and stocks of live animals rose, lower prices meant that the value of production fell by €51m (2.1%) on last year’s figures. Similarly, the value of milk output fell by €117m (6.2%) due to lower prices as the volume of milk production was up 4.7%.
Overall, goods output at producer prices decreased by 2.9% and is valued at €6,920m in 2016. The figures come from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) advance estimates for the end of the year.
Meanwhile, on the expenditure side, spending on retail feeding stuffs increased by 3.7% to reach €1,366m. Expenditure on fertilisers amounted to €502m in 2016, a decrease of 11.1% on 2015. And the costs of energy and lubricants reduced by 8.8% or €35m, mainly due to lower oil prices.
Operating surplus
The CSO estimates an increase in the operating surplus in agriculture this year by 3.5%, which follows a 2.5% increase in 2015. This can be attributed to an increase of nearly 17% in the value of net subsidies and a decrease of nearly 2% in the value of total intermediate consumption. The value of net subsidies increased by 10% to €1,542m this year due to a number of new direct payment schemes that became fully operational this year.
Total intermediate consumption is estimated to be down to €4,944m for this year, mainly driven by the lower cost of fertilisers and energy.
Updated figures for 2016 will be published in the preliminary estimate in March 2017, followed by the final estimate in June 2017.
Reaction
The ICMSA has described the figures as "very stark", showing a fall of €339 million in the value of the milk produced between 2014 and 2016.
ICMSA president John Comer said in a statement on Thursday that it is “no longer acceptable to have a situation where everyone in the supply chain from the farm gate onwards was able to keep or increase their own profit margins while the farmer-producer was wiped out to the extent that these figures demonstrated.”
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