Barriers to entry mean many young people who want to farm are "forced to find work away from home" a group of young sheep farmers has warned.

According to Michael Feely, chair of the Young Sheep Farmer Forum, farming is more than a job but there are major issues now facing the sector.

The forum, which supported by Kepak, Mountbellew Agricultural College and Bord Bia, was he said, "created in response to the major industry issues of declining flock numbers, lack of generational renewal and rising environmental and market challenges".

Sheep farmers

He said members of the forum want to "ensure sheep farmingremains viable for us as that next generation".

“We do it because we love working with animals and we take pride in producing high quality food," Feely said.

But he also believes that farming in Ireland is at a “crisis point”, and pointed to the “less than 6% of farm holders” who are under 35.

According to Feely over the past nine months, the forum has explored the full supply chain, from different farming systems and sustainability actions to factory processes and consumer demands.

Recommendations

Based on this research, the forum has developed a number recommendations which focus on three key areas:

• Generational renewal and land mobility;

• Income and investment support;

• Breaking barriers for entry.

“Some of our proposals require funding, but the main aim is to support productivity, efficiency, and sustainability,” he said.

Firstly, access to land, said Feely, “is the single biggest barrier facing young farmers”.

The forum has proposed “a seven-year farm retirement scheme encompassing phased transfers and pension support, tax relief for renting land within families to create a low risk ‘road test’ for succession, and a statutory land mobility body to provide legal, tax, and advisory support”.

The second key ask is to “strengthen income and investment support for young farmers”.

Feely said: “Recently we saw a 30% cut in the promised €5 per head increase in the National Sheep Welfare Scheme”.

The forum wants to see “stable support in the scheme, with a five-year commitment and a payment increase to €20 per head”.

Their final ask relates to barriers to entry.

The forum proposes “a nationally consistent rural planning system so young farmers can build a home on the family farm” and for “more robust farmer panels to make scheme design practical and inclusive, and education around grants and scheme supports to be embedded in Green Cert courses”.

“Our policy recommendations extend beyond the interests of young farmers, they are essential to the long term sustainability of the sheep sector," Feely added.