Opinion split as farm incomes in Eire rise again

14 December 2001




Opinion split as farm incomes in Eire rise again

By Philip Clarke Europe editor

FARM incomes in the Republic of Ireland have increased for the second year running, according to advance estimates from the Central Statistics Office in Cork.

Boosted by higher product prices and extra subsidies, the industrys operating surplus, before rent and finance, should be up 5.3% this year, to Ir£1.92bn (£1.52bn). That follows a 7.5% income improvement in 2000.

"Considering the problems agriculture has had to face, this represents a very positive result," said agriculture minister Joe Walsh.

But the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association says the rise has to be seen in the light of income decreases during previous years.

President Pat ORourke said: "The simple reality is that farm income in 2001 is over 8% lower than in 1996 and well behind those in other sectors."

Mr Walsh maintains that, after allowing for the number of people who have quit farming this year, average income per person employed in agriculture is up 15%.

Precise data on this is not yet available. But using an estimate of 140,000 farms in the Republic of Ireland, average operating surplus per holding is likely to come to about Ir£13,700 (£10,870).

That is still not a true reflection of farmer income, says the CSO. "It takes no account of off-farm income, which is increasingly important in Ireland, or of reinvestment levels, which vary hugely," said a spokesman.

According to CSO estimates, the biggest rises this year have been for sheep farmers, whose output climbed 37% to Ir£221m (£175m), and pig producers – up 21% at Ir£258m (£205m). Sheep farmers in particular have benefited from the boost to export values after the ban on their UK competitors due to foot-and-mouth.

Milk producers also did better, with a 6.5% rise in output to Ir£1.26bn (£984m). But cattle farmers suffered, as output values dropped 5% to Ir£1.03bn (£814m) due to the BSE crisis.

Irish Farmers Association president Tom Parlon said the situation would have been much worse were it not for the EUs purchase for destruction scheme, which put a floor in the beef market in the first six months of the year.

Net subsidy payments to Irish farmers increased by 4.6% this year to Ir£1.04bn, representing more than half of farmers aggregate income. This included an extra 20% beef premium advance, brought forward from 2002 in response to the BSE-induced price collapse across Europe.


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