Wheat, barley and oat production declined by about 20% last year

By Gráinne Ní Aodha, PA

The production of the three main cereals in Ireland declined by a fifth in 2023 compared with the previous year, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

The production of wheat fell by 27.7 per cent, barley by 17.8 per cent and oats by 20.6 per cent, or a total of 531,300 tonnes to 2,015,700 in 2023.

The wheat, barley and oat yield also dropped – by 12.8 per cent (1.4 tonnes per hectare), 16.1 per cent (1.3 tonnes per hectare), and 17.9 per cent (1.5 tonnes per hectare) respectively.

The production of potatoes was down by 12.4 per cent, or 45,800 tonnes, to 322,200 tonnes in 2023, and the potato yield decreased by 9.5 per cent, from 43.4 tonnes per hectare to 39.2 tonnes per hectare.

In the case of beans and peas, production rose 23.8 per cent, and oilseed rape production was up by 25.1 per cent.

Sophie Emerson, CSO statistician in agriculture surveys, said the increases were driven by a 50% jump in the area sown.

“The production of beans and peas rose from 65,700 tonnes to 81,300 tonnes in 2023 (+23.8 per cent) driven by an increase in the area sown of 5,400 hectares (+50.0 per cent) and despite a reduction in the yield from 6.1 tonnes per hectare to five tonnes per hectare (-17.5 per cent),” she said.

“The production of potatoes dropped from 368,000 tonnes in 2022 to 322,200 tonnes in 2023 (-12.4 per cent), based on a 3.3 per cent reduction in the area sown and a 9.5 per cent fall in the yield per hectare.”