Over eight people in the farming community have died by suicide in the last 10 days, according to Macra president, Elaine Houlihan.
Houlihan said she has heard from farmers in the last few weeks that “feel abandoned”.
“I’ve sat up in my bed at one or two o’clock in the morning talking young farmers out of doing things they shouldn’t be doing,” Houlihan said.
Holihan spoke at the European People’s Party (EPP) conference in Co. Carlow today (Friday, April 19).
She said the weather conditions experienced by farmers in the last few weeks has brought “misery and hardship”, with some farmers unable to get a break, yet “they go on”.
“This is not a model that is sustainable. This is deeply flawed, and we are relying on an aging population,” Houlihan said.
Houlihan said that as wet land conditions continue, the government “needs to” support farmers mental health, but said that there also needs to be support for research around the area.
“As bad as this time is for some, it is worse for others, there is risk of suicide,” Houlihan said.
“There’s no point saying that they are the exact same mental health issues as anybody else would have.
“It’s a bit more complex in the farming community, because you have to understand the struggles,” she added.
Houlihan called on anyone who needs to speak to “confide in somebody” as soon as they can.
“I would prefer to sit up here this time next year and see you all there rather than having to attend a funeral,” she said.
“Three times more people died from suicide than on our roads in 2020.
“As a nation, we should be embarrassed by this. We should be ashamed and angry,” Houlihan added.
Houlihan called on anyone who wants to speak to avail of Macra’s Make the Moove counselling service, which also has a crisis support team available.
Samaritan’s Ireland Helpline is also available on 116 123 or you can contact them by email: [email protected] for support.