More farm families seek to earn extra income as recession bites

MORE farm families are looking at innovative ways of securing extra income, as the recession continues to cause job losses in rural Ireland.

Paul McCarthy, Teagasc, explained that farm family income has been hit hard by the recession. Commodity prices have fallen to the point where even the best farms are struggling. Off-farm employment has declined by 30%. With the national unemployment rate now at almost 13%, there are many instances of people being back on the family farm, unemployed.

Several are now looking to set up alternative enterprises and new businesses to provide extra income and to build a more sustainable future.