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Roscommon’s suckler herd was contributed €180m to the national economy, research by UCD professor Michael Wallace has shown.
Farmers in Roscommon kept a total of 50,300 suckler cows in 2017, which accounted for 87% of all cows in the county.
These cows were split between 3,500 farms across the county, which represents a decline of 11% in the number of suckler farms since 2010.
Professor Wallace estimated that these farms generated €85m in farm output in 2017, without the inclusion of direct payments.
In terms of their contribution, both direct and indirect to the economy, the farms’ output is estimated at around €180m.
The total amount of employment generated is equivalent to 3,100 full-time jobs, or 12% of total employment in the county.
Warning
Professor Wallace has warned that if the decline of the beef industry continues at the current rate, one in every five of Ireland’s suckler farms and 142,000 suckler cows could be lost from the industry by 2028.
This represents a potentially significant blow to Irish agriculture, with sucklers contributing €1.4bn in beef output and providing 30,000 jobs directly to the economy.
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