Upbeat prices as 2025 draws to a close may have slightly balanced out the concerns some farmers have about what the New Year could ring in.

But that is unlikely to last long if conversations around the mart ring are anything to go by.

The prospect of Mercosur, rising cattle prices and the potential for higher input prices were among the main concerns that farmers highlighted to Agriland when we caught up with them at a mart.

One farmer said quite starkly that he is "expecting 2026 to be a bad year".

He has predicted that the year will start with "dearer cattle and not a great outlook".

2026

He is not the only one - Teagasc economists have also been downbeat about prospects for average farm incomes in Ireland in 2026.

They expect the average farm income could fall by 19% to just over €40,000.

Although Teagasc economists have forecast that dairy farms should "continue to benefit from high cull cow and surplus calf prices in 2026", they have also warned that dairy farm incomes could plunge by as much as 42% next year.

But how will other farmers fare in 2026?

Economists have forecast that the average cattle finishing farm will have a higher net margin in 2026 compared to 2025 with a forecast of €616 per hectare.

But net margins for the single suckling enterprise are forecast to decline in 2026 compared to 2025 however they will remain "well above previous levels".

Average incomes are forecast to rise on cattle other (finishing) farms in 2026, with an increase of 18% to €26,000. However average incomes on cattle rearing farms in 2026 are forecast to decrease by 5% to €28,500.

According to farmers that Agriland caught up with at the mart they are still keeping their fingers crossed at this stage.

One said that they don't expect returns to be as strong in 2026 as they were in 2025 but at the same time they think it "will be better than it was in 2024".