If bacon and sausages have always been among the main ingredients ofIrish fry, heavy Irish breakfast, the popularity of pork on the Emerald Isle hides a complicated reality.
Caught between rising operating costs and a slow production chain, breeders are running into endless debt. “We are going through an unprecedented crisis from which many will not recover, explains Shane McAuliffe, who manages four farms in County Kerry, in the southwest of the island. Our sector is going through ups and downs and we know that the good times will return, but it will take a long, long time to pay off these debts. »
Regulated by the law of supply and demand
The pig farming market is mainly regulated by the law of supply and demand and the 300 breeders present in Republic of Ireland receive virtually no state aid. However, between September 2021 and August 2022, it is estimated that they will lose an average of 450,000 pounds per farm (i.e. €540,000).
Their difficulties can be explained by the conjunction of several elements. First, the food prices. “They are already high because we are an island and we have to import, emphasizes Shane McAuliffe. This item of expenditure alone corresponds to 75% of our production costs. The increase in the price of energy and fertilizers caused the price per tonne to skyrocket. »
Farmers now spend €1.33 on feed alone for a kilo of meat that will be sold for €1.41. They lose an average of €33 per animal, according to figures from the Department of Agriculture.
Labor shortage
Added to this is a shortage of labor in slaughterhouses and processing plants. Since the pandemic and Brexit, butchers are lacking in these industries which employ many immigrants. Animals must therefore remain at home.
closes and space is running out.
“This system works like a production line: if one step blocks, all the others suffer, explains Caroline Rowley, founder of the animal defense association Ethical Farming Ireland. Pigs are intelligent animals, they have instincts such as making a nest or digging for roots. If they are stuck on the farm, they become aggressive and fight. It is also possible that the farms cut back on expenses, give less grain or cut the light. »
Brexit also slows down exports
Last grain of sand in the gears: trade routes have changed since Brexit. Exports to the UK fell by 47% in volume. For the moment, the Irish government has released seven million euros in aid, distributed at the rate of €20,000 per breeder. But for Shane McAuliffe, “this does not cover more than a week’s costs” .
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