Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 June 2023
477. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his response to the data on future needs relating to total job openings (details supplied), by occupation, in Ireland in 2022 to 2035, provided by the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, which shows that Ireland is set to lose 10,600 jobs in farming and related work; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29312/23]
View answerFarming and the agri-food sector are hugely important to our economy and our society. The agriculture, forestry and fishing sector employs over 101,000 people, representing 4% of total employment in the country, but a far greater proportion in rural and coastal areas. The produce of these farms, forestry and fishers directly generate a further 64,000 downstream jobs for a total almost 165,000 people working in the agri-food sector, representing close to 7% of total employment.
According to the CSO's Labour Force Survey, the number of people employed in agriculture has been decreasing. In 2000, there were 128,875 people employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing. By 2020, numbers employed had dropped to 107,025. In 2022 the figure was 101,200. However, it should be noted that the Labour Force Survey (LFS) from the CSO, which generates official employment data, include a person’s main employment only and not a secondary part-time employment.
Around 57% of farm holders or their spouse have an off-farm employment which is likely considered as their main employment, and therefore their work on the farm is not included in the official LFS. According to the CSO 2020 Agricultural Census, there were 278,580 family and regular non-family workers on Irish farms, indicating that many farm holders and their family members work part -time on the land in addition to their main employment. This number has actually increased from each of the two previous agriculture censuses, with 272,016 family and regular non-family workers in 2010 and 257,948 in 2000.
While the estimates produced by the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP) reflect existing trends, CEDEFOP states “detailed estimates are subject to possibly large and uncertain margins of error. They should not be taken literally but suggestive of indicative trends and patterns. As a rough rule of thumb, any cell containing fewer than 10,000 people should be regarded with caution. Cells with fewer than 1,000 people should be regarded with considerable scepticism”.
Food Vision 2030, our shared stakeholder-led strategy for the future of the agri-food sector, includes goals to “Improve the Social Sustainability of Primary Producers”, including the critically important issue of generational renewal, and to “Attract and Nurture Diverse and Inclusive Talent”. I will continue to work closely with the sector to help ensure that there is a vibrant workforce available to ensure the sustainable development of the agri-food in Ireland, despite the challenges posed by having close to full employment.
