Half the country’s farmers find inspections either stressful or very stressful, a major Irish Farmers Journal survey has found. Stress
Half the country’s farmers find inspections either stressful or very stressful, a major Irish Farmers Journal survey has found.
Stress
Forty per cent of the 885 farmers surveyed admitted to finding inspections stressful, while a further 10% described them as very stressful.
In contrast, 18% of respondents said they were relaxed or very relaxed at the prospect of farm inspections.
A further 32% of respondents said they were neither stressed nor relaxed about on-farm inspections.
Dairy farmers were the most stressed by inspections.
Twelve per cent said they found inspections very stressful, while a further 47% found them stressful.
Cattle finishers appeared best able to cope with inspections, with just 45% admitting to being stressed or very stressed by the entire process.
Among the issues mentioned by the survey participants was the pressure associated with such inspections.
In addition, there were complaints about the volume and complexity of documentation and the frequency of inspections, frustration among farmers regarding the absence of tangible benefits or rewards for compliance, and questions about the fairness of inspections.
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