Some 613 new milk suppliers have registered with six of Ireland’s co-ops since the end of quotas in 2015.Lakeland has had the largest number of new entrants, with 270 joining the co-op since 2015. Some 226 new entrants have joined Glanbia between 2015 and 2018, with 53 new milk suppliers in 2018.
Some 613 new milk suppliers have registered with six of Ireland’s co-ops since the end of quotas in 2015.
Lakeland has had the largest number of new entrants, with 270 joining the co-op since 2015. Some 226 new entrants have joined Glanbia between 2015 and 2018, with 53 new milk suppliers in 2018.
Arrabawn Co-op has had 63 new entrants enter dairying since quotas ended, with 11 new entrants to date in 2019. A spokesperson for Arrabawn said that the majority of the new entrants switched from suckler farming. Kerry Group has had 63 new suppliers since 2015, with 31 farmers switching from sucklers, 12 from beef and two from sheep. These new suppliers have supplied over 32m litres since joining Kerry.
The majority of Dairygold’s expanded milk volumes have been generated by existing milk suppliers
The average herd size of a new entrant in year one in Kerry was 45, while this number increased when it came to Arrabawn, jumping to 60.
A spokesperson for Dairygold told the Irish Farmers Journal that is has received new entrants every year since 2015.
“The majority of Dairygold’s expanded milk volumes have been generated by existing milk suppliers, as historically the majority of farms in the Golden Vale region, in which Dairygold operates, have been dairy enterprises.”
Bandon Co-op has had nine new entrants since the end of quotas, with the majority coming from suckler, beef or sheep farms.
Farm size
The 2018 Teagasc National Farm Survey shows that 40% of dairy farmers are farming land between 50ha and 100ha, 35% are farming between 30ha and 50ha and 18% are farming under 30ha. Some 7% are farming over 100ha.
In 2018, the average dairy herd size was 78, with a stocking rate of 2.08/ha. The average milk produced per hectare in 2018 was 11,415l.
The majority of Ireland’s dairy farms, some 11,708, are located in the south of the country – a traditional dairying area. This area includes Munster, Kilkenny, Carlow and Wexford.
In the northern and western region, which is Connacht, Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan, there is 2,352 dairy farms. Some 2,014 dairy farms are in the eastern and midlands region – Dublin, Kildare, Meath, Wicklow, Louth, Laois, Longford, Offaly and Westmeath.
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