This article is from page 51 of the 2007-08-07 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 51 JPG
FARM incomes plummeted by a massive 25 per cent 2006 according to the National Farm Survey pub- lished by Teagasc last week.
The average national family farm income is now just €16,680 a drop of €5,779 or 25.7 per cent on the 2005 levels. While these figures are arti- ficially high because of the one off high level of direct subsidy in 2005, it still represents another blow for the farming community.
Perhaps a more worrying trend is that, according to the survey, direct payments now account for 98 per cent of all family farm Income.
The survey, which was conducted by the Teagasc Rural Economy Re- search Centre, also showed that on full time farms the average family farm income was €34,486 – down by 15 per cent on the previous year.
Reacting to the results, IFA Presi- dent Padraig Walshe, said that the figures are not as bad as they seem.
ml GI Tea e Durem peeeelomrPAU ee moore efited from a once-off boost due to the timing of the changeover to the decoupled payments system, and this is the main reason for the 25 per cent decline in national farm income in 2006,” he said.
“Looking at the income trends in 2007, there clearly has been a recov-
ery in dairy markets. While some price increases to farmers have come through, I believe there is major scope for further price increases this year. Also, world grain markets are quite strong as we approach the 2007 harvest.
‘However, cattle and sheep prices are very disappointing this year. Winter beef finishers lost heavily due to poor prices and higher costs. In the sheep sector, continuing low prices and margins are resulting in a serious decline in the national ewe ley ucreLeNbOTCaBE COle) eum
Meanwhile, ICSA President Mal- colm Thompson expressed his con- cerns at some of the income statistics,
particularly regarding the drystock sector.
‘These statistics are a wake-up call to policy makers, food processors and factories alike,’ he said. “There is an obvious and deep structural de- ficiency in the systems employed by the drystock sector, and these figures demonstrate that the current system of farming is inherently unprofitable. You cannot survive in an industry Where your production costs out- weigh profit.”
Commenting on figures, the Presi- dent of ICMSA, Mr Jackie Cahill, said they demonstrated conclusively the very low income figures for full- WUSSom Ec DUES oli