County IFA chair Louise makes the case for Limerick farmers

IFA Farm Business chairperson Bill O’Keeffe has called on the Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe and the Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers to ensure that Ireland’s “most important indigenous sector – agri-food - and in particular farmers, receives the necessary supports in Budget 2026”.

Limerick IFA chairperson Louise Crowley put the case for local farmers forward at a pre-Budget lobbying event held in Dublin.

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Mr O’Keeffe acknowledged the significant economic challenges currently facing the country but stressed that Government must also recognise the vital and permanent role of agriculture in the national economy.

“Agriculture is here to stay and will continue to contribute, regardless of geopolitical uncertainty.

“Tillage farmers must be supported in Budget ‘26. “Without immediate and substantial commitments next week, many tillage farmers will be forced out of the sector. IFA will not accept the demise of this critical part of Irish agriculture.”

Mr O’Keeffe said the average age of Irish farmers is 59.

“If we are to encourage the next generation, the current cohort of farmers must be viable. Existing supports are essential to safeguarding farm incomes. Despite much-needed improvements in some commodity prices in 2025, many farmers remain dependent on our farm schemes, with the majority of livestock and tillage farmers earning below the national industrial wage.”

Bill O’Keeffe outlined several priority measures that must be delivered in Budget ‘26 - support for the tillage sector; continuation of existing taxation reliefs, particularly those facilitating generational renewal; increased funding for TB compensation and eradication scheme; increased funding allocation to TAMS; a permanent exemption for actively farmed land from Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT); enhanced funding for farming schemes and dedicated funding for farmers from the Climate and Nature Fund.

Mr O’Keeffe said: “This is the first Budget of this Government, and farmers expect meaningful delivery for our sector. The decisions made in the coming days and announced in next week’s Budget will be a clear signal of the Government’s commitment to safeguarding the future of Irish farming.”

IFA Rural Development chair John Curran said farmers, across all sectors, need tangible support even more so in this Budget than last year.

“And there’s no point robbing Peter to pay Paul either. It’s additional supports, not redistributed support that’s needed. We need existing supports to remain, and others, such as the ANC budget, to revert back to where they were in the past. Time will tell how much our minister and elected representatives really understand the pressures on-farm at the moment,” he said.