Farmers losing faith as threats mount

There has been a collapse in confidence levels among farmers and their families, with Brexit, the bitter beef crisis, and the Government’s depiction of the sector as “the cartoon ‘baddies” of climate change” fuelling growing pessimism.

The Irish Examiner/ICMSA poll found only 32% of respondents those polled were positive about farming in general — down from 66% a year ago.