Farming special - Day 1: Half of farmers directly hit by suicide

More than half of farmers have been directly affected by suicide, either in their immediate family or community.

The scale of the problem in rural Ireland comes just days after Mental Health Minister Kathleen Lynch said the Government was “very concerned” about the high rate of suicide, and a CSO report confirmed that more than 500 people had died by suicide here in 2011.

Ireland has the fourth highest suicide rate in Europe, with 10 people taking their own life every week.