Our agricultural output has grown since we joined the EU in 1973. Although dairy farmers have increased output per cow by 14%, the price received from their investment and effort by dropped by 22% since 2000. The Celtic tiger certainly has not benefited most farmers, rather it passed them by. The average farm income in 2009 was lower than it was in 2002. I am not sure if any other sector can claim to have lost income during the Celtic tiger years. As every self-employed person is aware, if one cannot pay one's costs, one's business will close. Smart farmers are asking how €5.4 billion of farmers' debt or investment, depending on the way one views it, will be paid if EU supports are cut, no alternative is offered, and the prices farmers get do not cover their costs.

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