Teagasc, the agriculture and food-development authority, has forecast a tougher year for farming in 2002, with overall farm incomes unlikely to reach this year's levels.
Teagasc economist Mr Liam Connolly told a Teagasc conference in Dublin yesterday that next year was likely to see some slide in the performance of dairying, sheep, pigs and tillage farming. Beef markets, while more stable than this time last year, remain difficult with continuing pressure on margins.
While milk producers received record prices during the past year, a steep rise in production costs resulted in margins being the same as in 2000.
Another Teagasc economist, Mr Billy Fingleton, said a major fall in market prices for the main internationally-traded dairy products would lead to a reduction in producer prices next year. As production costs remained high, the result would be a serious squeeze on margins.
In beef production, while the trade this year was seriously disrupted due to BSE and foot-and-mouth, the Purchase for Destruction Scheme and increased direct payments ensured that average margins were just marginally lower than last year.
Economist Mr Liam Dunne said that while cattle prices were now more stable than this time last year, beef producers were still facing considerable uncertainty in 2002. Margins could be maintained if non-EU markets such as Egypt were reopened and considerable volumes of beef exported.
Margins for sheep farmers were likely to be around 10 per cent lower in the coming year, the conference was told.
