Just over 1,100 employment permits have been issued to the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector in the first seven months of this year, latest government figures show.
This is significantly lower than last year when 3,778 employment permits were issued to the sector between January and July 2022.
The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment issued 62 permits for employment in agriculture, forestry and fishing last month, compared to 217 last year.
Kerry Group Services International Limited was granted six employment permits so far this year, as well as Kerry Group Services Limited which also received six permits.
Ornua Co-operative Limited received two permits in July, in addition to seven permits that were issued by the department in the first half of 2023.
In the first seven months of this year, Dawn Farm Foods has been issued three work permits, including one in July. Dawn Meats Ireland UC received 72 permits in 2023 to date.
Employment permits
In total, the department has issued over 18,300 work permits in the first seven months of this year. The majority of which were issued for health and social work activities.
Co. Dublin accounted for the largest share of issued permits at a total of 8,770 between January and July 2023. Leitrim and Longford received the least permits at 36 and 83 respectively.
In terms of nationality, almost 7,000 permits were issued to India, followed by Brazil (1,608), the Philippines (1,535), and Pakistan (934), department figures show.