Two in every five farmers believe that their farm organisation membership fee or levy does not deliver value, the results of an Irish Farmers Journal survey of over 1,000 farmers show.

Some 42% of respondents said they felt that the membership fee or levy that they pay for a farm organisation does not deliver value while 58% said it does.

In terms of different sectors, sheep farmers had the highest belief that membership fees deliver value at 69%, followed by dairy farmers at 61%, cattle finishers at 60% and suckler farmers at 53%

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Tillage farmers had the lowest belief in farm organisation fees delivering value, coming in at just over half of farmers at 52%.

Looking at the different provinces, farmers in Leinster had the most belief in the value of membership fees, at 62%, compared with Connacht which came in with the lowest, at 55%.

Ulster came in closely behind Leinster with 61%, while Munster saw 56% of farmers saying they feel membership fees return value back to the farmer.

Across Ireland, almost two thirds (65%) of farmers are a paid-up member of a farming organisation.

Dairy farmers

Dairy farmers held the highest membership rate, coming in at 82%, followed by tillage farmers at 74%.

Just over half of sheep farmers were members of a farming organisation, at 53%.

Meanwhile about 60% of suckler farmers and cattle finishers were members.

The largest proportion of farmer organisation members was found in Munster, where 73% of farmers were members, followed by Leinster with 67%, Ulster at 62% and Connacht with 53%.