Teagasc National Farm Survey, 2000-2017

The NFS has been conducted on an annual basis by Teagasc since 1972. The purpose of the survey is to determine the financial situation on Irish farms by measuring the level of gross output, costs and income across the spectrum of farming systems and sizes. A random nationally representative sample is selected each year in conjunction with the Central Statistics Office. Each farm in the survey is assigned a weighting factor so that the results of the survey are representative of the national population of farms. The survey is operated as part of the Farm Accountancy Data Network of the EU and it fulfils Ireland’s statutory obligation to provide data on farm output, costs and income to the European Commission on an annual basis. The principal measure of the income used is Family Farm Income per Farm (FFI). This is calculated by deducting all the farm costs (direct and overhead) from the value of farm gross output. Unpaid family labour is not included as a cost. FFI therefore represents the financial reward to all members of the family, who work on the farm, for their labour, management and investment. It does not include income from non-farming sources and thus may not be equated to household income.