Agricultural output prices increased by 15.5% in the 12 months to August 2025, new figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show.

The most significant output price increases in the 12 months to August 2025 were in cattle (up 53.8%), wool (up 31.9%), sheep (up 8.8%), and eggs (up 4.2%).

Crop prices overall fell by 5.5% in the 12 months, with potatoes dropping by over 30%.

Pigs were down nearly 13%, while milk prices fell 1.3%.

Inputs

Over the same 12 months, agricultural inputs rose by 2.4%.

Fertilisers rose by 14.4%, veterinary expenses by 4.7%, and electricity by 2.4%.

Motor fuel prices fell by 2.7%. 

Terms of trade fell by 0.3% in August 2025 when compared with the previous month and was 12.8% higher when compared with August 2024.

Sam Scriven, senior statistician in the CSO agriculture division, said: "In August 2025, the agricultural output price index fell by 0.5% compared with the previous month.

"Over the same period, the agricultural input price index decreased by 0.1%.

"Compared with August 2024, the output price index has increased by 15.5% while the input price index has risen by 2.4%."

Meat supply

Other CSO figures from this week show that Ireland’s rate of self-sufficiency for meat increased to 233% in 2024, compared to 230% in 2023.

The self-sufficiency rate went up for all categories of meat except for sheep meat, which fell from 405% to 385%.

The supply of total meat grew by 17,000t (1%) to 1.45 million tonnes in 2024.

Beef and veal accounted for 642,000t (44%) of supply, followed by pig meat at 393,000t (27%), and poultry at 351,000t (24%).

Sheep meat accounted for the remaining 67,000t (5%).