Future of farming - Cornerstone sector can celebrate

IN a world more characterised by change than ever before, farming, and the tens of thousands of jobs that flow from it, remains a cornerstone of this society and this economy.

Today, as the 80th National Ploughing Championships continue in Athy, Co Kildare, that constancy, that great contribution, is celebrated and how right it is that it is.

As so much of the world, and so many urban workers, feel the chill of recession, Irish farming is booming. As the eternal farming cycle — good years, then bad years and then good years again — turned one more time there are dramatic increases in farm incomes and agri-food exports. Because of soaring world food prices, driven by seemingly incessant demand, incomes have increased again this year following an extraordinary rise of 31% in 2010.

All the indications are that that trend will continue and, in time, accelerate as plans like Food Harvest 2020 come to fruition.

Already this small country produces enough food to feed 36 million people and, under that plan, it is intended that Irish farms will feed 50 million — more than 10 people for every one of us. These are astonishing figures apart altogether from the economic impact and represent an exemplary level of ambition. Around 128,000 family farms and approximately 1,100 food or drinks firms will be involved in that gargantuan project.

As the world population soars towards the seven billion Rubicon increases in productivity like this take on a new urgency and are as essential as they are impressive.

Some of the 2020 targets include increasing the value of primary output by €1.5bn, increasing value added by €3bn and pushing sector exports to €12bn. This would involve a 50% increase in milk production, a 20% value increase in beef output, a 50% value increase in pigmeat output and nearly a doubling — 78% — of growth in aquaculture production.

Already good progress has been made towards reaching some of those targets. This year dairy exports increased by 47% between January and May. Farm exports are up 14% for the first six months of the year too. Agri-food and drink accounts for 18% of our total industrial output, while five of the top 20 export companies come from the sector. Agri-food companies account for 60% of manufacturing exports by indigenous firms. If the rest of the economy could match or even come close to matching these figures our travails would end a lot sooner than they may.

These surging figures have had a positive impact already. Many of those who had thought that a life on the farm might not be for them are having second thoughts. As farm incomes grow, and as off-farm options become even more limited, this change may accelerate. That would be very welcome as farming, like very other industry, depends on the occasional infusion of new blood. This is especially so in a sector where entry options are limited and prohibitively expensive.

As of September 2010 the report card for Irish farming is impressive and the future looks better than it has for some time.

So the tens of thousands of people who will visit what has become a great national festival in Athy have every reason to celebrate and invest in a future laden with opportunity.