No relief for farmers as heavy rain prevents planting and putting animals out

Met Éireann's farming forecast spells disaster for farmers as they struggle to start their springtime work due to persistent rain.

The national forecaster is predicting rainfall amounts between two to four times the normal range, preventing farmers from planting seed or turning their animals out to grass.

Soil conditions are poor and waterlogged, which is also preventing farmers from bring machinery on to their fields.

This dismal farming forecast comes ahead of the publication of Met Éireann's analysis of March's weather, which is set to be published later this Wednesday and already indicates that March 2024 was one of the wettest on record.

Dr Joe Patton, head of dairy knowledge for Teagasc, has said that conditions are "approaching, or maybe have passed, crisis point."

"Farmers want to start getting their spring work field work underway, grazing and getting getting animals out to grass, and all that but they're just completely stymied at the moment," he said, speaking on RTÉ Morning Ireland.

"We would estimate that a wet week at this moment is probably costing dairy farmers in the region of possibly up to €30 million on a national scale a week, probably something similar for beef farmers."