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JUST 37 PER CENT of Irish farms are economically viable farm businesses according to a new survey which has shown that average family farm income fell by 15 per cent less year.
Preliminary estimates published in the Teagasc National Farm Survey today show that the Single Farm Payment, an EU subsidy, remains the most important direct payment to farmers, accounting for 58 per cent of their income.
For cattle farmers it accounts for 80 per cent of their income with dairy farmers less reliant on the payment which makes up 33 per cent of their income.
Thirty-seven per cent of farms are classed as economically viable in that these farms have the capacity to pay family labour at the average agricultural wage and provide five per cent return on non-land assets.
As a result most farms in Ireland are classed in the survey as either sustainable or vulnerable. A sustainable farm is said to be not economically viable but sustainable due to off-farm income.
Farms without off-farm income are classed as vulnerable and there are about 26,000 of these in Ireland.
Production and feed costs all increased last year as a result of the inclement weather with expenditure on feed up by over a quarter.
Average family farm income fell from €30,095 to €25,483, a 15 per cent drop but still more than in 2010. Income on dairy farms fell by fell by 24 per cent last year from €67,847 to €51,648, the largest drop.
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One for Me , One for Myself and One for the person who wrote this ;)
Nice! Thanks Fergal :)
Lickarse
The true meaning of Easter, thank you God for sending the Easter bunny into the world. Amen
My mother has a gripe with Easter Eggs; “Sure there’s no more in them than a bar of chocolate”, so we never got them at home. This year I got a giant Kinder egg one and I’m already playing with the toy inside it. It’s like catching up with missed Christmases!
Cant beat them big kinder eggs…expensive as hell, but oh so good
You can never go wrong, in having leftover Easter eggs and making Rice Krispie buns… Devine, that’s the way il be recycling my leftover chocolate
What is this mysterious stuff “leftover” chocolate???
Leftover chocolate??? What is this rare phenomenon you speak of?
a little bit of irony last week, junior’s RE teacher implied that the Easter Bunny wasnt real……
15 nieces and nephews between me and my partner, 3 children and 3 of my children’s friends. 21 Easter eggs bought. A little over the average.
I’m always hangin for a pint on Good Friday!
And I bet it’s those who can least afford to who are buying the drink and the eggs !
It’s amazing how good the retail industry are at monetizing this sort of thing. From celebrating the execution of a bloke who thought he was the son of god to pressurizing parents into buying overpriced chocolate eggs. Genius!
Three! I have given out about four already and have at least another six at home ready to go, that is if Cookie Monster ie. hubby doesn’t get to them first!!
My mammy always buys me a giant Easter egg. A serving suggestion put an Easter egg in the fridge and than get a bag of marshmallows. Place a marshmallow on top of the piece of cool chocolate fresh from the fridge and enjoy :)
Aoife, the Lir handmade one one you desk is from Gizmo
My sons 5 and got his first Easter egg last year. His first time having chocolate. Im putting a limit on his eggs from others as I ended up giving the left over ones away at Halloween to the trick or treaters!!! #confusedwitches
And the average number of craps is…
When you get 3 or more eggs for Easter I get sick of eating them cause they all taste the same, so I diversify/change them into something else…it’s lush when you melt the chocolate and pour it into the Rice Krispies it’s a change
“Munster is the county…” someone opened their Good Friday alcohol a little early :P
Seriously. What a ridiculous event.
What ever happened to mother goose??? Bunnies and eggs…more like little brown k’nobblins
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