Irish farmers feeling the pinch

The latest outlook report by Teagasc, the semi-state authority in Ireland responsible for research and development, warns of continued financial concerns for Irish farmers as high costs exert pressure on 'the three Fs': fuel, feed and fertiliser.

Teagasc says along with other sectors of the economy, Irish farmers are also faced with considerable uncertainty about input price inflation, which impacted production decisipns. This they say is driven mainly by Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, which had on-the-spot consequences for the fuel, feed and fertiliser markets.

Teagasc says Irish farmers are feeling the biggest financial squeeze from soaring fertiliser costs, which have more than doubled, fuel prices up by 50% and feed prices rising by 33%. It says high input costs have negated any benefit from expected higher incomes.

"Overall, significantly higher production costs across all sectors in 2022 are expected in 2023 - widening the gap between the cost of production for farmers and what they are being paid," says Teagasc.

It says while the average farm income is up considerably, the increase is entirely driven by the strong performance of the dairy sector, which is likely to be up by 50%. But it concludes that the dairy sector outlook for 2023, however, is less than positive.