Farmers urged to take out pension plans

Ireland: Young farmers have been urged to take out a pension to ensure their personal finances are secure at retirement.

Macra na Feirme’s new president Colm Markey said pension awareness remains low in Ireland especially among farmers, with CSO figures for 2002 showing that only 16% of them have private pension plans.

Noting that farmers currently have a strong reliance on state pensions after retirement age, he said it was vital that they start investing in pensions at an early age to avoid having to make big contributions in later life.