Around four in ten Irish dairy farmers had an average income of less than €30,000 in 2023, according to a new report.

The Teagasc National Farm Survey 2023, which was published today (Tuesday, July 23), states that the overall average income of the 15,319 dairy farmers represented in the survey stood at €49,432 in 2023.

This marks a drop of 69% or €108,000 when compared with the average income recorded for the sector in 2022 at €157,591.

Teagasc said that the significant drop in average incomes was due to "sharply lower milk prices, lower milk production, alongside high production costs".

The report shows that 39% of dairy farms had an average family farm income (FFI) below €30,000 in 2023.

The proportion of farms in the highest income category of over €100,000 went from 64% in 2022 to just 15% last year.

In 2023, 19% of fairy farms reported an average FFI of between €30,000 and €50,000, 15% earned between €50,000 and €70,000 and 12% had an average income between €70,000 and €100,000.

The average direct payment received on dairy farms in 2023 remained stable last year at €21,667.

Last year, around 43% of dairy farms were in the 50 to 100ha size category, with a further 30% in the 30 to 50ha bracket.

Smaller farms represented 13% of the dairy farm population, with the remaining 14% sized above 100ha.

The report shows that overall Irish milk production decreased in 2023 by just over 4%.

The falloff in production was particularly evident in the final three months of the year against a backdrop of high costs, low milk price and difficult weather conditions.

On a per hectare basis, average milk production decreased by 4 percent year-on-year to 11,669 litres.

This reduction, coupled with a 28% drop in milk price resulted in a decline in gross output per hectare of 30% to €5,200 on average.

On a per hectare basis, direct costs increased by 1% on average to €2,482.

Overall, this resulted in the average dairy gross margin per hectare decreasing by 46% to €2,718 in 2023.

Total production costs remained high on dairy farms in 2023, dropping just 1% on the very high costs experienced in 2022.

The average dairy farm with a herd of 95 cows purchased concentrate expenditure totalled €61,535 in 2023, a 5% decrease on the previous year.

The survey shows that feed volumes averaged 1,207 kg per dairy cow in 2023, down marginally compared to 2022.

Teagasc noted that feed use per cow on individual farms may differ considerably from the average level due to location, land type, stocking rate and length of housing.

Expenditure on purchased bulky feed increased by 8% to €6,879 on average in 2023, due to lower grass availability.

Fertiliser spend on dairy farms decreased by 23% in 2023 to €23,845, on average. The data also indicates that fertiliser use was back by 8% last year.

Machinery hire (contracting) expenditure increased by 6% on average to €17,391, with other livestock and veterinary costs up 5% to €16,339.

The costs relating to hired labour were rose 4% to €9,125 on average.

The report also shows a 10% increase in spending for renting conacre to €9,783, on average. Almost eight in ten dairy farmers said that they are renting some land.

Average investment on dairy farms in 2023 was €43,417, back 13% on the previous year.

Just over two-thirds of dairy farms had farm related borrowings in 2023; the averagefarm debt in 2023 declined by 8% year-on-year to €136,171.

On average, 80% of dairy farm debt was considered medium to long-term.