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Analysis of the most recent Revenue data shows a troubling gap between gross income and farm income in counties in the west and northwest of Ireland.
Gross income includes off-farm and spousal income and the figures from 2015, which are the latest available, give the example of Sligo, where farmers had a healthy gross income average of €42,343, but an average farm income of just €12,064.
In contrast, Tipperary farmers had a gross income average of €45,341 and an average farm income of €31,283.
While it may not come as a shock that a county with a strong background in dairy outperforms a county in the west of Ireland, the €19,219 gap between farm incomes is considerable.
Regional divide
The regional divide between provinces echoed through the analysis, with farmers in Leitrim consistently receiving the lowest average farm income at €10,671, its third consecutive time as the lowest, and Waterford receiving the highest average farm income at €36,054.
According to the Central Statistics Office, the annual average household expenditure on living expenses, including food and mortgage repayments, is €43,524.
Overall, farmers in Connacht had the lowest average farm income at €12,524, while farmers in Munster had the highest at €26,871, yet both enjoyed average gross incomes of over €40,000.
Farmers in Ulster had an average farm income of €17,788, and in Leinster the average farm income was €26,762, with Longford having the lowest average farm income in the province at €17,034.
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