Peter Cleere (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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347. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on the strategy to develop a suicide prevention intervention for farmers in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8863/25]

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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Primary responsibility for mental health lies with the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive including strategies and interventions that support farmers’ mental health.

Farmers are not immune to the tragedy of suicide. Every death by suicide is one too many and leaves behind a devastated family. Research by Teagasc has found that overall, the incidence of death by suicide amongst farmers is not significantly different to the general population. There is a need for further research to identify more vulnerable groups within the farming sector. Research has highlighted the need for initiatives which promote and support farmers' mental health and wellbeing.

Through dedicated funding of €2.5 million, my Department will continue to implement existing and new initiatives to improve the safety, health and wellbeing of our farming community. These include initiatives to support increased awareness of the importance of mental health among farmers including the farmers physical and mental health awareness programme called ‘On Feirm Ground 2’ trains agricultural professionals and service providers to signpost farmers to supports in relation to health and wellbeing.

My Department is supporting further research into farmer mental health. Examples of projects include the DCU led FarMHealth Research Project which examined farmers mental health literacy and help-seeking behaviour to inform the development of an educational mental health intervention for farmers, and the UCD-led “Farming Minds: Developing evidence-based interventions to enhance farmer mental health.

Last year, I supported 20 farm safety, health and wellbeing projects under an Open Call. Over half of these projects focused on farmer's mental health and wellbeing.

My Department distributed the HSA’s Farm Safety Partnership booklet on “Farmers’ Health and Wellbeing - A Guide to Staying Healthy While Farming” in the BISS packs in 2023.

Farm safety, health and wellbeing remains a priority for me and my colleague, Michael Healy-Rae T.D. Minister of State with special responsibility for farm safety.