M. Shahbandeh
Research expert covering agriculture & FMCG
Agriculture industry in Ireland - statistics & facts
Ireland has a history of agriculture going back over thousands of years. The climate makes the country ideal for livestock and grass production. The average income of a family farm in Ireland is a little over 45.8 thousand euros. Dairy farms have the highest average income in Ireland, followed by tillage farms.
Annually the country produces over 1.4 million metric tons of meat. In 2022, about 3.55 million pigs were slaughtered, almost double the number of cattle slaughtered in that year. The average price of pigmeat was expected to range from about 1.4 euros per kilogram up the over two euros per kilogram in 2022. This mirrors the rising monthly costs for pig farms.
Livestock and dairy
Livestock and dairy are important industries in Ireland. Many people love Irish butter for the unique taste created from grass fed dairy cows. There are about 7.4 million cattle in Ireland and approximately one-fifth of them are dairy cows. Since 2018 the value of milk production has grown by about almost 95 percent, reaching a value of about 4.97 billion euros in 2022.Annually the country produces over 1.4 million metric tons of meat. In 2022, about 3.55 million pigs were slaughtered, almost double the number of cattle slaughtered in that year. The average price of pigmeat was expected to range from about 1.4 euros per kilogram up the over two euros per kilogram in 2022. This mirrors the rising monthly costs for pig farms.
Crop production
Overall, the total area under crops in Ireland has increased from June 2019 to June 2022. There were about 285 thousand hectares of area under crops in Ireland as of 2022. Forage plants have the highest production value out of all the crops produced in Ireland. In 2022, forage crops made up over half of the total crop production value, followed by barley and potatoes. That year, the annual potato production amounted to about 368 thousand tons. Between 2017 and 2022, the total number of tractors sold each year in Ireland increased from 1,796 units to about 2,125 units as increased profits due to higher commodity prices have allowed both livestock and tillage farmers to expand their operations.
