Ireland: {Éire}

Ireland's Food System

Did you know that potatoes have been a staple food for Ireland since the eighteenth century? They helped citizens of the country throughout the time of the famine due to them being nutritious, calorie-dense, cheap, and easy to grow in Irish soil.

In Ireland, the agri-food industry is the oldest and largest indigenous exporting sector. Back in 2022, the sector employed 164,900 people which represented 6.5% of the total workforce across 135,000 farms, 2,000 fishing vessels and aquaculture sites, and 2,000 food production and drink enterprises. 4.5 million hectares of agricultural land belongs to the Irish agri-food sector.

The agri-food sector is a crucial industry across the globe, with a large emphasis on animal agriculture. Animal agriculture is continuously in operation in order to provide meat and dairy produce for our ever-growing society. Statistics show that Ireland had 6,551,800 cattle in December 2022, which was a drop by 1.5% compared to 2021, however it is more than in 2020. Almost 30% of the cattle herd are male and 70% female. There were 4 million sheep and 1.57 million pigs, down from 1.71 million in December 2021 following a difficult year for pig farmers.

One of EIT Food's main tasks is to bring innovation, especially around food production and agriculture, to the market more quickly with the help of start-ups and thus to make the food system healthier and more sustainable together with SMEs.

Irish folklore dictates that a deep cross must be cut into the top of soda bread dough before it is baked to ensure good luck.