Too often, when articles about family farming life appear in the media, the focus is negative. The looming effect of Brexit or beef price disputes are regularly plastered across the headlines. We take for granted the enormous economic contribution that farmers make to not just rural economies, but the Irish economy at large. We too easily overlook the irreplaceable roles they play in keeping rural communities alive. While we dwell on the contribution of cows to climate change, we speak less about the active role farmers play in protecting biodiversity, preserving rural landscapes and ensuring high levels of animal welfare. As part of the Alltech Ireland and Agri Aware sponsored “Agcredible Shed Talks”, I will be highlighting the immeasurable, positive contribution of Irish farm families at a live webinar at 8 p.m. on July 7.

Consumers across the globe are becoming increasingly concerned about the provenance of their food, its environmental impact, animal welfare conditions, the treatment of workers in the supply chain and, of course, its nutritional attributes. We are lucky in Ireland. We take for granted that food production comes from family-operated farms, that animals graze freely on grass and we assume it is normal to walk into our grocery shops and be welcomed by an array of locally and ethically produced food. However, in many countries of the world, food production is dominated by industrialised large-scale farming, where animals are raised on feed-lots and where farm labour is largely migrant, low-paid and often exploited.

In Ireland, over 99% of farms are family-owned and operated, predominately, with family labour. This compares to less than two-thirds of farms in France, and while over 90% of farms in the US are family-owned, less than two-thirds of the farmland is family-operated. Dairy cows in Ireland spend an average of 250 days per year at grass. We take for granted that cows can express this natural grazing behaviour, which is essential for their welfare. However, it is estimated that only 10% of global milk production comes from grazing systems.

Apart from the supply of ethically produced food, Irish family farms make a substantial contribution to the economy. The agri-food sector, which stands on the shoulders of Ireland’s 137,000 farm families, provides direct and indirect employment to over 300,000 people, accounts for 10% of Ireland’s exports and 7.5% of Ireland’s gross national income. Farming families make a considerable contribution to the Irish local economy, both through the inputs they purchase and the outputs produced. Estimates say that farmers spend almost €4 billion annually on agri-inputs and services, nearly all of which is spent in the local rural economy.

The economic impact of the agri-food sector is considerable. It exceeds that of many other industries in the Irish economy, meaning that an increase in output in the sector generates relatively more economic activity than a comparable growth elsewhere. Referred to as the multiplier effect, a €1 million increase in agricultural output generates a further €1.44 million in the broader economy.

In addition to the economic impact, family farms contribute to wider societal sustainability, particularly seeing as they are often located in marginal or economically disadvantaged areas, where their presence is vital to the social fabric and cultural capital. They produce public goods, such as protection of the environment and biodiversity and the preservation of the landscape, and unique features, such as stone walls and hedgerows, all of which positively contribute to the image of rural Ireland and tourism. 

Family farms make a positive but sometimes difficult-to-measure impact. Their contribution to the Irish economy, the preservation of the rural environment and the social fabric of rural Ireland is significant. While they face many challenges ahead, such as Brexit, the COVID-19-induced recession and other factors that may place downward pressure on what are already poor income levels on many farms, they are a resilient community. Family farms have braved and survived numerous crises over many generations, and no doubt they will prevail into the future too. Much depends on their resilience.