Young farmers needed for milk sector

THE low number of young people going into dairy farming is a major impediment to expansion of Irish milk production, one of the country’s top dairy farmers has warned.

Jim Dwyer, who runs an intensive dairy business at Moneymore, Borris-in-Ossory, told a national conference in UCD that just 8% of farmers are under 35-years-old. This, combined with reduced numbers of young people pursuing agricultural training courses, will result in a major deficit in skilled people to drive an internationally competitive dairy industry.

“There are great opportunities to grow the size of the dairy sector. But without a pathway for young people to make a decent income from dairying, the long-term future of the industry is in doubt. Countries like New Zealand have operated methods such as ‘share farming’ that have given young people an entry platform. In Ireland, our record over the past two decades in ensuring a stream of dairy farmer successors has been abysmal,” said Jim Dwyer.