A total of 78,438t of wheat and barley were exported out of Ireland in 2019 according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO). The majority of this grain traveled to Northern Ireland.

25,049t of wheat were exported, while 53,389t of barley left the country.

Barley exports

Of the 53,389t of barley (unmilled) 95% travelled to Northern Ireland. The remaining barley crossed the Irish Sea, while insignificant amounts went to Gibraltar and Lebanon.

In 2018, only 14,857t left the country, but in that year the total wheat and barley harvest amounted to approximately 1,717,000t – 456,000t lower than 2017. In 2018, spring crops were planted late and both spring and winter cereal yields were hit by drought.

It is also worth noting that the majority of the increase came from barley exports.

In 2019, 50,478t of barley were exported, while this figure was just 15,150t in 2018.

138,156t of barley (unmilled) were imported into the Republic of Ireland in 2019.

Wheat exports

25,049t of wheat (other wheat including spelt and meslin unmilled) were exported from Ireland in 2019. 24,215t – or 97% – of this wheat were exported to over the border to Northern Ireland, while the remaining 833t was exported to Great Britain.

261,381t of wheat (other wheat including spelt and meslin, unmilled) were imported into Ireland in 2019.

AgriLand must stress that this raw data was provided by the CSO and indicates trends, some figures may be subject to change.

AgriLand will have more on these import figures and export figures throughout the week!