A National Perspective
The Irish dairy industry is a key component of the economy in Ireland, providing much needed employment spread across rural areas. Our industry processes over 7.5 billion litres of milk, across 30 sites and is supplied by 18,000 family farms, many of whom are owners of the primary business. Since the abolition of quotas, we are striving to be a global leader in the development of a high value, environmentally sustainable dairy industry based on our extensive grass-based dairy system. Irish dairy companies have invested hundreds of millions towards this goal, resulting in over €4 billion worth of exports in dairy products, ingredients and nutritional products per annum. Irish dairy is exported to 155+ markets worldwide with international markets beyond the EU becoming increasingly important. Irish primary dairies continue to be 100% Irish owned entities, and the quality of our produce is reflected in the fact that 3 of the world’s major specialised nutrition companies have chosen to base key secondary processing sites in Ireland.