71% of agricultural contractors believe that there will be shortage of fodder on many Irish farms this winter, according to a new survey.
The Association of Farm and Forestry Contractors in Ireland (FCI) carried out the survey of its members exclusively for Agriland last weekend on the current state of the fodder reserves on farms of their farming clients.
The 1,500 contractors on the FCI database each work on an average of three Irish farms each day. The association said that this gives them a unique insight into what is happening on Irish farms.
FCI
The FCI survey respondents were from every county in the Republic of Ireland and are all agricultural contractors who provide silage harvesting services to their client farmers.
The findings indicate that the area of second-cut silage has not increased despite the efforts of the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine (DAFM) and Teagasc to encourage an increase in silage harvesting.
64% (43) of the 67 contractors who responded said that the area of second-cut silage that they have harvested this year had not increased.
The FCI survey has also indicated that second-cut silage crops are lighter in 2024 compared with last year.
The contractors said that lower fertiliser use due to confusion among farmers about their allowances, coupled with a lack of rainfall and poor soil temperatures, have all contributed to lower second-cut silage yields in 2024.
73% (54) of the 74 FCI members who responded to this question said that second-cut silage crops were not as heavy as last year.
This latest FCI survey indicates that members expect there to be a fodder shortage on many farms this winter.
71% (54) of the 76 contractors who responded believe that there will be shortage of fodder on many Irish farms this winter based on their silage area harvested so far in 2024.
Fodder
Teagasc has again advised farmers to ensure fodder requirements are in place in the coming weeks ahead of winter this year.
Data presented to the National Fodder and Food Security Committee (NFFSC) in early July highlighted that up to 30% of farms had fodder deficits of more than 10% for the coming winter.
This was due to a combination of reasons including reduced silage areas and yields, less opportunity for surplus grazing covers to be cut as silage, and a late spring depleting any carry over of stocks in yards.
Farmers are advised to complete a fodder budget as soon as possible and assess fodder stocks compared to requirements for the winter period based on expected livestock numbers.