Richard Halleron gives an overview of the dairy industry in the Republic of Ireland.Dairy farming is the backbone of Irish agriculture. At farm level, the industry comprises 42,000 herdowners milking an average of 24 to 26 cows. The national quota is just over five billion litres, however, 75% of producers have individual quotas of lessthan 145,000 litres. Given that the family farm still predominates, the importance of milk production to the rural economy, and its crucial role in keeping significant numbers of people on the land, cannot be over estimated. "Our primary objective is to maintain the maximum number of viable family farms while at the same time producing milk as efficiently as possible," explains Tom Moran, principal officer with the Irish Department of Agriculture's Dairy Policy Unit.
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