The horticulture industry, including non-food crops and potatoes, was valued at approximately €400 million in 2011 or 6.4% of total agricultural output.
Whilst there are no detailed statistics of the number of persons employed in horticulture, the industry is labour intensive and it is estimated that as many as 8,500 are employed across the food and non-food areas.
The general state of the economy and the availability of credit from banks are the two main factors impacting on the industry. As horticulture consists of a number of sectors, different factors can influence its well being, e.g. weather can very much influence both the growth of plants and demand for plants as is evidenced by the recent bad weather which depressed demand for nursery stock. Other factors include the role of the supermarkets, exchange rates particularly in the mushroom sector and energy costs. Whilst the industry is under some pressure, the outlook is generally positive.