The Celtic Tiger has brought rapid economic and social change to urban areas. But it has also impacted on rural life where the majority of farmers are now part-time and they or their wives engage in off-farm employment. In spite of that, farm output has risen during the past 10 years. The entire sector is now worth some €17 billion and employs about 240,000 people.
Last year, an average full-time farmer earned €34,500, some €4,000 more than the average industrial worker. The previous year, the gap was more than €12,000, the result of once-off, direct farm payments made under Common Agriculture Policy reforms. Part-time farmers earned about one-quarter of their full-time counterparts in 2006. And 98 per cent of that came by way of EU direct payments. Indeed, part-timers may enjoy the best of both worlds, with a regular income stream from urban employment supporting a high quality of life in the countryside - albeit one involving long hours and hard physical work.
There is also the consideration of a valuable farm asset. Improved living conditions and higher disposable incomes have contributed to a greater awareness of environmental issues. And this has been reflected in a more benign view of farming practices, in terms of environmental damage and animal cruelty, by city dwellers.
It may be a cliché, but farmers are beginning to clean up their act. An estimated 48,000 have applied for grant assistance under a waste management scheme designed to reduce water pollution levels in rivers and lakes. But time is running out. The Environmental Protection Agency will introduce an action programme to protect water quality in 2009. And the EU Water Framework Directive provides for rigorous standards and severe penalties for the improper disposal of farmyard slurry.
Recent bad weather has made life difficult for the tourist industry and for farmers, in particular, who have watched the summer pass under leaden skies. A fine, dry spell could rescue that situation. Grain harvest yields may still fall back. But, with world grain prices up 50 per cent on last year, the broad outlook is positive. In the same way, the dairy sector is doing well.
The greatest threat to the rural economy lies in a sharp downturn in the construction industry where many part-time farmers are employed. In broad terms, however, the outlook for the farming community is positive. Although there are uncertainties, particularly for those involved in cattle rearing and sheep farming who - according to the latest figures - are faring significantly more poorly than their dairy and tillage counterparts, farming continues to offer a good way of life.