Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

My Department monitors the information on farms and the wider agrifood sector. We do that in collaboration with Teagasc and the Central Statistics Office, and that is ongoing at all times.

The number of farms in Ireland is recorded every ten years in the CSO census of agriculture, most recently in 2010 and 2020. In addition, the CSO undertakes farm structure surveys periodically between censuses. Those happened in 2013 and 2016.

The total number of farms recorded in the 2010 census of agriculture in Ireland was 139,860, with a similar figure recorded in the 2013 farm structure survey. The 2016 farm structure survey recorded 137,500 farms, while the 2020 census of agriculture shows the figure standing at 135,000. There was, therefore, a reduction of approximately 4,800 farms between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, representing a decrease of 3.4% in the decade. This is a slight reduction overall in farm numbers and this was matched with a steady increase in the average size of agricultural holdings.

According to the latest census of agriculture, over 96% of the 135,000 farm holdings in Ireland are operated as family farms, representing more than 130,000 farms in 2020. The CSO defines "family farms" as farms which are operated as family-based enterprises.

I remain fully committed to the family farm model. Food Vision 2030, our shared strategy for the sustainable development of the sector, is clear in laying out the importance of the family farm model to social sustainability. The design of the current CAP strategic plan and the significant funding we are putting in, including the record 50% increase this Government has delivered in national funding of the CAP, reflects the fact we want to support family farms, the continuation of farming and the number of those participating in it.

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