On 23 July we saw the release of the Teagasc annual farm survey, this is representative of 85,000 out of 135,000 farms. With that level of surveying there is little or no margin for error.

The survey, as we all know, is an accurate reflection of the state of Irish Agriculture.

The results from the survey were not surprising to anyone connected with the land or the agricultural sector, 2023 was a bad year, no, 2023 was a disastrous year.

It’s strange when you look at the coverage of the release of the survey when you compare the 2022 report to 2023. The year 2022 was a bumper one for farmers, farmers put in the effort, and they were rewarded for same, isn’t that what we all want?

Report comparison

From the media coverage of the 2022 report, we saw that the big winners were not surprisingly Dairy and Tillage with a 50% and 31% increase in income in 2022 when compared to 2021.

The headline figures make the headlines, for example the reported average farm income for a dairy farm in 2022 (based on 65 ha) was €148,598, while a tillage farm had an average income of €76,013 (based on 45 ha). There was little if any coverage of the decreases felt in 2022 for Sheep (-21%) and Cattle Rearing (-23%).

Fast forward to the 2023 report that saw a drop in income of the following magnitudes: Dairy: 69%, Tillage: 71%, Sheep: 22%, Cattle rearing: 15% and Cattle other: 19%, and we wonder why people aren’t rushing into farming in their droves.

When we compare the drop in incomes felt by farming families across the country over the last 18 months to the increases being sought and given to other sectors, is, quite frankly, sickening.

Words without action

We recently saw an airline with senior pilots earning in excess of €300k per annum accept a pay deal that will see increases of 17.75% over four years, this was to help them keep up with inflation.

We have heard about a commitment to family farms from all government parties, we have heard that rural Ireland must be saved, we also hear that generational renewal is a political priority.

We hear a lot, what we do not see is action.

Repeating the same experiment over and over again, expecting a different result has not and will not work in Irish agriculture.

Can we equip the next generation with the tools required to give Irish agriculture any chance of survival?

Irish agriculture has been failed, it has not been supported in any real manner that will help it survive.

Macra last year spoke on Quantas boarding passes, they are becoming more and more attractive with each passing day.