The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has defended Teagasc's projected €52.4 million pension bill for 2026 - which represents 30% of its annual state grant.

Figures provided by DAFM to Agriland show that €52.388 million has been allocated to Teagasc for superannuation and related pension costs in 2026.

Teagasc’s total grant allocation for 2026 is €175.622 million - which means that the authority's pension bill could represent 30% of the overall budget.

According to DAFM, Teagasc paid out €49.861 million in superannuation costs last year.

This covers both ongoing pension payments to retired staff and retirement lump-sum payments made during the year.

The increase to a potential €52.388 million to cover pension costs for 2026 represents an additional €2.527 million, or just over 5%, compared with the amount paid last year.

According to DAFM, like other non-commercial public bodies, Teagasc operates pension schemes which are funded annually from exchequer grant aid and also from contributions deducted from staff salaries.

In a statement to Agriland, a DAFM spokesperson said: "It is recognised that Teagasc has a large pension bill due to its corporate history arising from the merger of An Foras Taluntais (AFT) and ACOT in 1988 to form Teagasc".

DAFM 

The DAFM spokesperson added: "The department provides Teagasc with yearly grant aid to fund its activities - €175.6 million this year.

"It is central to the sustainability of public service pensions having regard to improved life expectancy and added public service numbers".

Monthly pensions

The figures provided by DAFM to Agriland show that during 2025, an average of 1,751 retired former employees received monthly pension payments from Teagasc.

In total, these monthly pension payments amounted to €45.535 million last year.

On average, this represents an annual pension payment in the region of €26,000 per pension recipient - however individual pensions vary on a number of different factors including how long they may have worked at Teagasc, salary and pension entitlements.

The difference between the total superannuation cost (€49.861 million) and the monthly pension payments (€45.535 million) also reflects retirement lump-sum payments made to employees who retired during the year.

These figures underline the significant financial commitment Teagasc has when it comes to meeting the pension costs of former staff.

A spokesperson for Teagasc said the organisation provides a "detailed breakdown of its expenditure, including pension payments to retired staff, in its annual report and financial statements each, year which is published and available on the Teagasc website".

"Provision for payments to pensioners is included in the grant aid to Teagasc.

"Like all public sector employees, the pension on retirement is calculated based on the numbers of years service and the pay level when they were an employee," they added.

The spokesperson also highlighted that because Teagasc provides research, education and advisory "in a single entity, it is a significant employer of staff and consequently has a significant number of pensioners". 

"Current staff numbers, replacement of retiring staff, and recruitment of new staff is determined by a delegated sanction pay budget and by a cap on numbers," they added.