Significant Decline in Irish Dairy Farmers' Income in 2023

The survey, representative of nearly 85,000 farms in Ireland, reveals that all farm systems recorded their lowest average incomes in several years. The average family farm income dropped by 57% in 2023, reaching €19,925.

Teagasc attributes this decline to a sharp decrease in dairy and tillage farm incomes driven by lower milk and cereal prices, reduced production volumes, and high input costs. These two sectors collectively accounted for 53% of farm income in Ireland for 2023.

The report highlights the highly volatile nature of farm income, following a year of record earnings for dairy and tillage in 2022. Drystock farms also experienced a significant income decline in 2023 due to decreased output value and persistent high production costs.

Key points from the Teagasc NFS Summary Results for Average Farm Incomes from 2020 to 2023 include:

• A 28% drop in milk prices and a 30% to 35% decrease in cereal prices in 2023 compared to 2022.
• Dairy farm production costs remained at their 2022 peak, despite a 4% fall in milk output volume due to low profitability and challenging production conditions.
• Average dairy farm income fell to €49,432 in 2023, down from €157,591 in the previous year.
• Tillage farm income plummeted by 71%, reducing the average income to €21,400, a decrease of over €52,000.
• Drystock farms, including cattle and sheep farms, saw significant reductions in income due to decreased output value and high production costs.

Teagasc emphasized that the high general inflation rate of recent years must be considered, as it reduces the real value of these average farm incomes.

Overall, the National Farm Survey 2023 underscores the economic challenges faced by Irish farmers, with substantial drops in income across all farm systems due to fluctuating market conditions and persistent high costs.

Teagasc NFS Summary Results for Average Farm Incomes 2020 to 2023 

Photo by agriland.ie