Substantial fall in farm incomes disappointing  - Muir

DAERA Minister Andrew Muir has described the substantial fall in farm incomes for 2023 as disappointing but a reflection of the fall in milk prices and the continued elevation of input costs.

The Minister was commenting following the publication of the first (provisional) estimate for 2023 farm incomes, which indicate that the ‘Total Income from Farming’ (TIFF) in Northern Ireland fell by 44.0% (47.8% in real terms) from £609 million in 2022 to £341 million in 2023.

Mr Muir said: “It is disappointing that the total income from farming figure for the industry as a whole decreased between 2022 and 2023 by 44.0%.  This decrease reflects the reduced milk prices from the record high levels of the previous year and the continued elevation in input costs for the agriculture sector.”   

“Minister Muir continued: Income estimates for specific farm types also show that while decreases are expected for Cereals, Dairy and Mixed farms between 2022 and 2023, there are small increases expected for Cattle & Sheep farms and more substantial increases for Pig farms because of the rise in pigmeat prices during 2023.”

“Minister Muir continued: Fluctuating market conditions is not a new problem, but it remains a very difficult issue for farmers to address.  These fluctuations are mainly due to price influences across world markets which are very much outside our control.  Consequently, my Department focuses effort on helping farmers mitigate cost and price pressures by improving their productivity and resilience, while also addressing their environmental sustainability levels. These are the goals of our new farm support and development programme.  CAFRE continues to offer relevant training and support to farmers in pursuit of these policy objectives.”

Notes to editors: 

1. The 2023 farm income figures can be found at Northern Ireland agricultural incomes in 2023 | Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (daera-ni.gov.uk)
2. All media queries should be directed to the DAERA Press Office: pressoffice.group@daera-ni.gov.uk or telephone: 028 9016 3460.
3. The Executive Information Service operates an out of hours service for media enquiries only between 1800hrs and 0800hrs Monday to Friday and at weekends and public holidays. The duty press officer can be contacted on 028 9037 8110.

3. DAERA Statistics are available on the DAERA website or via Twitter: @DAERAstats

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