Rising farm costs ‘must be tackled’

Ireland: New figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) on the rising cost of agricultural inputs are worrying, says Fine Gael.

The party’s agriculture and food spokesman Billy Timmins said the figures show that the cost of inputs, such as energy and fertilisers as well as veterinary expenses have continued to grow while, at the same time, the prices that farmers are receiving are still in decline.

“These figures show that in 2003 farmers’ energy costs increased by 6%; veterinary expenses rose by almost 5%, and fertilisers increased by 2%.