The average income of a dairy family farm in 2025 increased 41% on 2024, to an average of €153,319, according to the Teagasc national farm survey (NFS) 2025.

This increase was driven by a strong rise in milk production and an overall year-on-year increase in milk price to an annual average of almost 54c/l, despite a deterioration in monthly milk prices in the latter part of 2025, Teagasc has said.

There was a large increase in the proportion of farms reporting an average income above €100,000 in 2025, up 19 percentage points on 2024, to 65% of the dairy farms.

On the other hand, the number of dairy farms with an income below €30,000 declined from 12% to 8% in 2025.

Irish milk production increased by 4.8% in 2025 as a result of favourable production conditions.

Total production costs remained relatively stable, up 1% year on year, albeit at an elevated level.

On a per-hectare basis, average milk production increased by 3% in 2025 to 11,494 litres.

A continued decline in the average dairy stocking rate was observed, at 2 livestock units (LU) in 2025, due to a slight increase in the average dairy area and some reduction in cow numbers.

The size of the average dairy herd in 2025 was 97 cows, down slightly on last year.

This reduction may be down to favourable cattle prices, additional environmental compliance requirements and contract rearing on some farms.

Volatility

The sharp volatility seen in recent years in terms of milk production costs and milk output prices is highlighted in the report.

This has proven very difficult for farmers to anticipate and manage and has increased the need to further build resilience into their production systems, the report says.

The average milk price reported in the survey in 2025 was 54c/l, while the average cost of production was 36c/l.

Almost eight in 10 dairy farmers are renting in some land with this figure stabilising in recent years, according to the survey.