Suckler farm incomes will rise by 11% to €9,700 in 2023, according to Teagasc’s 2023 Outlook published on Tuesday.

The analysis by Teagasc researchers suggests that beef finishers will see their incomes rise by a smaller 2% to €17,300.

The uptick in beef farm incomes will come off the back of stable volumes of beef production, both domestically and in key export destinations, according to the Teagasc Outlook.

Teagasc predicts that the average finished cattle prices will be 4% higher in 2023 and that young cattle prices will increase by 5%. It says the availability of additional support under Pillar II of the new CAP will also benefit cattle producers.

2022

However, the forecast rise in 2023 beef incomes follows a year where Teagasc says beef incomes fell by some 20%.

Teagasc says higher production costs for beef farmers “more than offset” the benefit of higher cattle prices. The average suckler farm income is estimated to have been €8,700 in 2022. This decline has come about despite the positive influence of the Fodder Support Scheme on farm incomes.

Suckler farm incomes will rise by 11% to €9,700 in 2023, according to Teagasc. \ Donal O' Leary

The combination of higher finished cattle prices and the contribution from the Fodder Support Scheme have offset most of the increase in production costs on beef finisher farms. However, the average income for these farms in 2022 is estimated to be down 2% to about €16,900.

Sheep

While beef incomes are forecast to rise next year, sheep farm incomes are not given the same positive outlook with a 2% drop expected on 2022 levels.

Despite this, Teagasc suggests that lamb prices will increase by 2%, on average, in 2023.

The Outlook predicts that on farms with mainly sheep, incomes will continue to be boosted by the receipt of payments from CAP Pillar II schemes in 2023 such as the new Sheep Improvement Scheme.

However, sheep farm input costs are forecast to increase by 4%, leading to the overall 2% decline in income predicted. This will leave the average sheep farm income at just under €19,500 next year.

2022

The 2% drop in sheep farm income forecast comes following estimates of a 4% drop for 2022.

While Teagasc again says sheep farms benefited from higher lamb prices at “record levels” in 2022 and payments via the Fodder Support Scheme, it says such farms also dealt with higher production costs.

Sheep farm incomes are forecast to see a 2% drop on 2022 levels. \ Philip Doyle

The receipt of payments from participation in the Sheep Welfare Scheme boosted gross output, but was not sufficient to cover the input cost increases.

Overall, sheep farm incomes were back to about €19,800 in 2022, 4% lower than 2021.

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