The results of a new farm business report have revealed a wide range in farm performance levels in Northern Ireland, with the difference in gross margin per cow between dairy enterprises equating to £1,009/cow.
The Northern Ireland Farm Performance Indicators 2022/23 report showed the large gap between dairy enterprises classified as ‘excellent’ and ‘poor’.
This is the 21 edition of the annual publication, which is designed to provide farmers with reliable data to assess the performance of their farm business.
Farm accounts from a representative sample of approximately 350 farms across Northern Ireland were submitted to the Farm Business Survey (FBS).
Overall, seven out of 14 of the main enterprises recorded increases in gross margins between 2021/22 and 2022/23.
Gross margins
The gross margin for a dairy cow in 2022/23 was £1,680 for average performing enterprises and £2,180 for excellent performers.
This was an increase from 2021/22, when the price per cow was £1,181.
In 2022/23, the average gross margin for non-Less Favoured Area (LFA) suckler cows was £282, £284 for those from disadvantaged areas and £242 for those from severly disadvantaged areas.
For excellent performing enterprises in severly disadvantaged areas, the margin grew to £504/cow.
Non-LFA breeding ewes saw a gross margin of £72 in 2022/23, a drop from £92 in 2021/22. Those from disadvantaged areas stood at £59, unchanged from 2021/22.
Cross-bred flocks from severly disadvantaged areas had a gross margin of £74/ewe, an increase from £58 in 2021/22.
Hardy hill breeds from severly disadvantaged area had a rate of £42/ewe in 2022/23, an increase from £20 in 2021/22.
Pigs, from birth to bacon, had a gross margin of £40 in 2022/23, compared to £33 in 2021/22.
Crops
Average performing spring barley enterprises had a gross margin of £1,220/ha, compared to excellent performing enterprises at £1,482/ha.
The winter wheat gross margin for average enterprises was £1,220/ha in 2022/23, with excellent performers at £1,452/ha.
In 2021/22, overall, spring barley enterprises saw a gross margin of £1,158/ha with winter wheat at £1,811.
In 2022/23, average winter barley enterprises had a gross margin of £1,501/ha, compared to £1,453/ha in 2021/22.
Spring wheat gross margin in 2022/23 was £1,480/ha and spring oats stood at £1,278, with no data available for those categories in 2021/22.
Winter oats gross margin was £1,621/ha in 2022/23, compared to £1,303/ha in 2021/22.
Ware potatoes dropped from £3,198 in 2021/22 to £2,662 in 2022/23.
