The median standard farm output of Irish farms in 2023 was €15,413 in 2023, up from €12,225 compared to 2013, a 26.1% increase.
That’s according the Central Statistics Office (CSO), which has published the findings of the 2023 Farm Structure Survey.
The wide-ranging survey – which includes data on farm demographics, land utilisation, and output, among many other areas – is carried out in years ending in three or six, with results published the following year.
The median figure refers to the point at which half of farms have a standard output below that figure and half of them have a standard output higher than it.
The standard output of an agricultural product is defined as the average monetary value of the agricultural output at farm-gate prices.
The CSO said that the standard output is not a measure of farm incomes as it does not take into account costs, direct payments, VAT, or taxes on products.
The South East region (counties Carlow, Kilkenny, Waterford, and Wexford) had the highest median standard output, indicating 50% of farms had a standard output of over €34,353. The Border region reported the lowest median standard output, with €10,736.
In 2023, Kilkenny had the highest median standard output with €38,801. The lowest median standard output was reported for farms in Donegal, at €8,439.
The top 12 counties in terms of median standard output are as follows:
- Kilkenny – €38,801;
- Wexford – €34,933;
- Waterford – €33,554;
- Tipperary – €30,109;
- Laois – €29,012;
- Carlow – €28,155;
- Offaly – €26,210;
- Cork – €25,035;
- Meath – €21,984;
- Westmeath – €21,511;
- Wicklow – €21,127;
- Kildare – €20,458.
In general, the standard output was higher for larger size farms. 62.1% of farms larger than 100ha had a standard output greater than €100,000.
For farms smaller than 10ha, 48.2% of them had an standard output less than €4,000.
In terms of farm size, the average utilised agricultural area (UAA) was larger for farms with a higher standard output. Farms with a standard output less than €4,000, and between €4,000 and €8,000, had an average UAA of 10.4ha and 15.1ha respectively.
Farms in the €50,000-€100,000, and over €100,000, economic size categories reported average UAA of 58.4ha and 83ha respectively.
Looking at farm type, in 2023 median values indicate that 50% if specialist dairy farms, and mixed crops and livestock farms, had standard outputs greater than €225,056 and €57,261 respectively.
All specialist dairy farms reported a standard output greater than €15,000, and 88.4% reported standard output higher than €100,000.
Farm types that had the next largest average and median standard output were: specialist tillage farms (average of €101,982 and median of €55,094); mixed crops and livestock (average of €87,808 and median of €57,261); and mixed grazing livestock (average of €35,037 and median of €28,357).
Specialist beef production, specialist sheep production, and mixed field crops had the lowest average and median standard output in 2023. All averages for these sectors were less than €22,000, and all medians were less than €14,000.
In general, farms with a higher standard output were owned by younger farm holders. The median age for farm holders on farms with an economic size of over €100,000 was 58. Farmers with an economic size less than €8,000 were owned by holders with a median age of 62.
In general, female farm holders make up a higher proportion of holders in the smaller economic size categories compared to those in the larger size categories.
Female holders represented 21.1% and 16.5% of holders in the less than €4,000, and €4,000-€8,000 categories respectively; and represented 7.3% of holders in the over €100,000 category.
The proportion of male holders increases as standard output does. Male holders represented 78.9% of holders on farms of economic size less than €4,000, compared to 86.8% across all farms.