The average income for those employed in the agriculture sector across the EU fell by 4.3% last year, according to the latest figures from Eurostat. Interestingly, the data shows that in Ireland, the average income of those employed in the agricultural sector actually increased in 2015, rising by 1.4% compared with the previous year.

The largest falls in income for those employed in the agriculture sector were recorded in Germany, Poland and Luxembourg with drops of more than 20%.

The Russian ban on EU food imports was singled out as one of the main reasons for the decline in incomes after it hit producers and prices of key commodities hard last year. Eurostat also stated that the decrease in incomes corresponds to a fall in the value of animal production.

The increased prices in the beef, sheep and poultry sectors were not enough to offset the tumble in prices for dairy and pigs. All in all, drops in income were recorded in 15 EU member states, while less than a dozen countries, including Ireland, saw the average income of those employed in agriculture increase.