Teagasc Submission to in response to Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine Public Consultation on the CAP Post-2027 Regulations

By Teagasc

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• The Teagasc submission outlines the importance of CAP budgetary expenditure to Ireland’s national receipts from EU budget and the likely negative impact that a reduced budget for EU CAP will have on Ireland’s direct receipts from the proposed EU budget for the period 2028-2034.
• The submission highlights the importance to Irish agricultural and farm incomes of CAP funded direct income support payments under Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 of the current CAP.
• The submission highlights that the importance of CAP payments funded by the EU (and via the co-funding of Pillar 2 payments by the national exchequer) varies by region and by farm system. Data from the Preliminary Estimate Agricultural Output Input and Income for 2025, from the 2024 CSO Regional Accounts for Agriculture and from Teagasc’s 2024 National Farm Survey are presented to illustrate the dependence and the importance of CAP direct payments to Irish agricultural sector and farm incomes.
• The submission refers to analyses undertaken by economists from Teagasc Agricultural Economics and Farm Survey Department of previous CAP reform proposals and agreements. These analyses have been based on both Teagasc NFS data and DAFM administrative data.
• The analysis of the last reform cycle (implemented from 2023) found that the impact on farm incomes was relatively modest. This outcome was in part due to the fact that the budget for the CAP in Ireland was largely stable as compared to the preceding planning period.
• The current CAP reform proposals in addition to proposing changes to how direct income support payments budgets are distributed across the population of Irish farmers also proposes to reduce the size of the budget for CAP measures that directly support farm incomes.
• This later aspect of the CAP proposals may lead to more significant (negative) impacts on family farm income than were assessed as arising from the last CAP reform.
• Teagasc’s Agricultural Economics and Farm Surveys Department (AEFS) will, with the cooperation of DAFM, undertake detailed economic analysis in support of national policy objectives and to inform the broader community of agri-food stakeholders about the impact of the proposed reform and any agreed CAP reform proposals. This work will take place through 2026 and 2027.
• Given Teagasc’s extensive technical expertise, operational capacity, and its reach across the most productive segments of Irish agriculture, the organisation would welcome the opportunity to contribute to the design and operational structuring of schemes under the CAP post 2027.