06 November 2023

The financial performance of dairy farms in 2023

Jim Moyles, Teagasc Dairy Advisor, joins Emma-Louise Coffey on this week’s Dairy Edge to discuss the financial performance of dairy farms in 2023 and potential areas where farmers can focus on to protect profits.

Jim documents farm accounts for 27 farms from January to September. He explains that farm receipts have declined by €800/cow compared with 2022, resulting from a 15C/L drop in milk price, while production remained steady to the end of August.

Farm costs remained relatively steady with variable costs increasing by €8 and fixed costs increasing by €60 year-on-year. Consequently, surplus cash has declined from €1,550/cow in 2022 to €700 in 2023. Jim reminds us that this surplus cash must cover own labour/drawings, tax and repayments.

Jim advises that all farmers should complete a cost control planner in order to assess their individual farm situation because a group average masks a lot. While the average surplus cash is €700/cow, the range across the group was -€17/cow to +€1,300/cow. Characteristics of the farms achieving higher surplus cash include good milk and animal sales and a tight control on costs.

Listen to this podcast below:

For more episodes from the Dairy Edge podcast, a co-production with LastCastMedia.com, go to the show page at: https://www.teagasc.ie/animals/dairy/the-dairy-edge-podcast/