asked the Minister for Agriculture if he will state (a) the acreage and value of beet grown; (b) the number of beet growers; (c) the amount paid in wages by growers; and (d) the number of labourers employed in each beet-growing county during the 1929-1930 season.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Statistics of Beet Growing.
I have no information which would enable me to give figures for the individual counties concerned. The total acreage of beet grown for the Carlow factory during the period in question was 12,919, and the value of the produce delivered at the factory was £359,904. The total number of growers was approximately 5,000. A large proportion of the acreage was grown by small farmers who employ little or no hired labour, and it is not possible, in the circumstances, to give any reliable information as to the amount of wages paid or the number of labourers employed.