Focus on agriculture
In County Kerry
Agriculture
Introduction
Ireland has a two-tier farming economy. Farmers with the necessary land resources and capital carry
out high input/high output farming. The geography of soil quality and topography in Ireland, as well
as historical structural and cultural factors, mean that outdoor high input/output farming systems
are more characteristic of the south and east of the country. Such farms are also more likely to fall
into the economically viable category of intensive livestock and arable farming that benefits most
from market and farm subsidies under Pillar 1 of the CAP. In the north and west of the country,
farmers commonly work with challenging soil and topographical conditions, factors that are
compounded by farm fragmentation. Farming in these areas is more likely to be low input/low
output and to fall into the economically weak group of subsistence pastoral farming dependent on
subsidies for the provision of public goods under Pillar 2 of the CAP and/or off-farm income.
Additionally, farms in the hinterlands of towns and cities face their own particular challenges such as
residential and industrial land development pressures. County Kerry includes all of these categories
of farms.
A note on methodology
Census of Agriculture
The Census of Agriculture is conducted once every ten years and gives a full overview of agricultural
activity on farms across the State. The most recent farm census in 2010 provides information on
farm size (physical and economic), farming activities and farmholder characteristics for the almost
140,000 farms still operating in the country.
Scale of spatial data
While data is collected at the farm-level, these data are then grouped to protect confidentiality and
is often presented at the small-scale of the county. The most detailed scale at which farm data is
publically available is at the level of the electoral division (ED). There are 166 EDs in County Kerry.
Eleven EDs with no agricultural activity and with fewer than ten farms1have been excluded from the
mapping analysis. This leaves 155 EDs with agricultural activity that can be mapped. The 2010 maps
in this report are at the level of the electoral division (ED). Figures of county-level data include
information from those 11 EDs.
Classification of spatial data
Since each map displays data from 155 EDs, the data must be classified or organised into a
manageable number of classes in order to be mapped and interpreted. Following McCafferty and
O’Keeffe (2014), the classification scheme used for the 2010 maps is based on national points of
reference of the indicator being mapped to allow the 2010 Kerry ‘story’ be interpreted in relation to
the national context. Firstly, the 2,828 EDs in the State with agricultural activity for ten farms or
more are ranked from lowest to highest value for the indicator of interest. The key parameters of
the indicator are the values at the 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th and 90th percentiles where the 50th percentile
or median is the average value at which 50 per cent of EDs in the State returned a smaller value for
that indicator and 50 per cent returned a larger value. These national parameters are then used as
1
To protect the confidentiality of respondents in such low density areas.
1
‘class breaks’ for organising the map data. The median and other percentiles perform better than
the mean and standard deviations when exploring the highly skewed distributions characteristic of
many socio-economic phenomena. In this way, the distribution of the indicator in County Kerry can
be readily compared with the national picture.
Colour of data classes
The spatial pattern is displayed through a choropleth map, where each data class is distinguished by
a unique colour.
The nature of the 2010 data is that it diverges around the national median, therefore the lightest
colours occur around this average value and the colours darken as the values increase either above
(green) or below (brown) this 50th percentile. This allows the map reader to easily detect areas in
Kerry which differentiate to a greater or lesser extent from the national average.
Maps
All maps of indicators are located in appendix 1.
Vegetation and Land Cover
Primary production is underpinned by natural resources and in Ireland, farming remains a
predominantly outdoors industry, giving Irish food produce a clean, green, natural reputation when
compared with more fossil-fuel based indoor produce and livestock systems found in countries such
as the Netherlands. So it is useful to start this assessment of agriculture in County Kerry by looking
first at its vegetation and land cover – what advantages and disadvantages do Kerry farmers face
when it comes to their land resources?
Map 1 highlights how land resources vary across Kerry. In south Kerry, only the arc from
Castlemaineeast to Killarney is characterised by the most suitable farming vegetation of dry
grassland2 and it is also concentrated along the south coast of the Dingle peninsula. In the north and
east of the county, including the economic core area, dry grassland is more widespread. Overall, the
land most suitable for agriculture tends to coincide with the more populated areas of the
countywhere farmers face competition for land resources from development pressures. Elsewhere,
bog/heath is the main land cover that together with patches of forest and scrubland overlays the
uplands of the three peninsulas except in the vicinity of the rural towns and villages. This mix of
bog/heath, forest and scrubland also characterises the SliabhLuachra area in the central eastern part
of the county extending to the borders with counties Limerick and Cork. It is easy to see how Kerry’s
original settlement patterndeveloped from the distribution of its low-lying grasslands.
Farm Livelihood Strategies and Farmer Demographics
Figure 13 shows the farm livelihood strategies of Irish farmers from 1991 to 2010. The graph reveals
a decline in full-time farming, a rise in the practice of combining farming with an off-farm job and
increasing on-farm diversification. It also shows that the strategy of exiting farming diminished over
the 2000s. This suggests the positive effectsthat Pillar 2 of the CAP and the change to the Single
Farm Payment (SFP) based on historical production has had on farm numbers, and also indicates the
role of the economic recession in raising the appeal of farming. But it reflects sluggishness in Irish
farm succession as elderly farmers continue to farm unviable enterprises due to the lack of an
interested farm successor orfarm succession tax incentivesunsuited to low income part-time farms,
2
Dry grassland is grassland with well-drained soils versus wet grassland with poorly drained soils.
2
or because with greater male life expectancy, aging farmers who need to reduce their farming
activities can still achieve the cross-compliance conditions of their direct payments. Thus, high
proportions of elderly farmersare masking the extent of economically vulnerable farms, especially in
low input/low output farming areas, and this unfavourable demographic profileis borne out in the
farm data for County Kerry.
Figure 13: Irish farm livelihood strategies, 1991 to 20103.
From: Crowley and Meredith (2014).
By 2010,over half of Irish farmers were aged 55 years or older (up from 40 per cent in 2000). The
proportion of those younger than 35 years had halved from 13 per cent in both 1991 and 2000, to
just six per cent. These 2010 proportions are mirrored in Kerry with 49 per cent of farmers aged 55
years plus and just seven per cent under 35 years (figure 14).
Figure 14: Farm holders in County Kerry by age class, 1991, 2000 and 2010.
Data source: Census of Agriculture, 1991, 2000, 2010.
3
Crowley, C. and D. Meredith (2014) ‘Agricultural restructuring in the EU: An Irish case study’ in Copus and de Lima (eds),
Territorial Cohesion in Rural Europe. London: Routledge.
3
Such an ageing farmer population jeopardises the role that farming plays in sustaining not only rural
economies but rural communities as well. This integral role of the farming economy and community
within the broader rural area can be linked to the declines being observed in such rural market
towns as Listowel, Cahersiveen and Sneem. Overall, long-term trends in the agricultural sector as
well as broader socio-economic trends, are leading to ageing farming communities, especially in the
more disadvantaged rural areas of south Kerry and SliabhLuachra, by making the industry less
accessible and/or less attractive to the next generation. In turn, the resulting out-migration of farm
offspring, a dynamic and productive sector of the rural community,feeds into rural decline more
generally.
Farm Structures
The last nationwide farm census was conducted in 2010 andoffers a snapshot of farming activities at
the level of the electoral division4. Nationally, the number of farms declined one per cent between
2000 and 2010 to just under 140,000 farms and the average farm size rose four per cent to 32.7
hectares. County Kerry returned a total of 8,412 farms5 in 2010 (down one per cent to comprise six
per cent of the State’s total farms) and the average farm size rose four per cent to 34 hectares. The
farm populations in County Kerry and the State show similar compositions in terms of their physical
size (figure 15) and economic size (figure 16).
Figure 15: Farms classified by land area (hectares), 2010.
Data source: Census of Agriculture, 2010.
The maps reveal a more complex picture at the local level. Farm size varies noticeably across the
county with large hill farms of marginal land in Kerry’s extensive upland areas. Map 2 shows that
average farm sizes6 in upland areas of the peninsulas lie in the top 10 per cent in the State (51ha
plus). Elsewhere in the county, most areas display average farm sizes in both classesaround the
national median of 34ha (range 26-42ha).
4
Central Statistics Office (CSO) (2012) ‘Census of Agriculture 2010: Final results.’ Dublin: Stationery Office.
Data for the five farms in Killarney Urban were suppressed by the CSO to protect confidentiality therefore all subsequent
data for South Kerry excludes information from those enterprises.
6
Calculated as the total agricultural area used divided by the number of farms per electoral division.
5
4
Figure 16: Farms classified by economic size (standard output in €), 2010.
Data source: Census of Agriculture, 2010.
But areas with large farms do not necessarily translate into areas with big farm enterprises as the
following map shows. Instead, average farm economic sizes above the national median tend to occur
in north and central Kerry EDs (map 3). There, grassland areas correspond with high levels of farm
output and, in a later section, this will be related to the pursuit of intensive production in those
areas, especially in the higher income farming systems.
On the other hand, coastal EDs around the peninsulas are associated with average farm standard
outputs in the lowest quartile nationally, especially along the Ring of Kerry where land cover is
mainly bog and heath land cover. Thus, there is strong local variation in farming output across Kerry
underpinned by its land resources. Such land resources, including topography, are a key determinant
of the type of farming pursued in different parts of the county.
Farming Systems
As is the case nationally, some two-thirds of farms in County Kerry aredrystock systems of specialist
beef cattle or sheep (figure 17). But both beef cattle and sheep farming are low-return farming
systems on average. Figure 18 shows that beef cattle production and sheep farms, along with mixed
field crop enterprises, returned the smallest economic sizes in the State in 2010. The numbers at the
end of each bar give the total number of that farm type in Kerry. It reveals that these three farm
types of low average output comprised 71 per cent (5,954 farms) of all farms in Kerry.
5
Figure 17: Farms classified by farming system, 2010.
Data source: Census of Agriculture, 2010.
Figure 18: Farming system classified by national average economic size (SO), 2010.
Source: Census of Agriculture, 2010.
Data from the annual National Farm Survey (NFS) conducted in 2010, the same year as the farm
census, reveals that market output is not sufficient to cover production costs on drystock enterprises
that make up over 63 per cent of farms in Kerry.Low market returns from cattle and sheep farms
mean that family farm incomes are wholly comprised of only a proportion of their direct payments
(up to half being used up by production costs on cattle rearing farms). This resulted inlow average
family farm income on cattle rearing, cattle other7, and sheep farms in 2010 (table 1)8.
7
Other than suckler cow production.
Hennessy, T., Moran, B., Kinsella, A. and Quinlan, G. (2011) National Farm Survey 2010.Athenry: Teagasc. A further seven
per cent of Kerry farms are in the mixed field crops system, the farm type with the lowest economic size of all in the 2010
farm census of just €5,174. This type of farm is not included in the table as it is not referred to in the National Farm Survey.
8
6
Of the more profitable dairy and arable production systems, dairy farming is noticeably more
common in Kerry (18 per cent) than nationally (11 per cent) while tillage is less so (just one per cent
versus three per cent). The following series of maps shows the distribution of the main farming
systems across County Kerry and helps to link the spatial pattern of average farm economic size to
the type of farming carried out in different parts of the county.
Table 1: Average family farm income among the main farm types in Kerry and the State, 2010.
Farm Type / System
Average Annual
% of Farms in the
% of Farms in Kerry#
#
Income2010(€)*
State
Cattle Rearing
7,023
56
47
Cattle Other
9,676
Dairy
44,432
11
18
Sheep
12,269
10
17
Mixed Livestock
31,533
11
9
Tillage
36,759
3
1
All
17,771
91&
92&
*Data from National Farm Survey 2010.
#
Data from Census of Agriculture 2010.
&
Does not total 100 as omits additional farm types in farm census (mixed field crops, mixed crops and livestock, other).
Dairying is the most common lucrative farming system in Kerry and map 4 reveals that it is strongly
associated with the north and east of the county. In fact, over one quarter of the county’s EDs
returned rates of specialist dairy farming in the 90th plus percentile in the country. The map of dairy
farming signposts parts of the county set to benefit from the expansion of the dairy sector from
2015 with the abolition of milk quotas. Conversely, most of the peninsulas fall into the lowest
quartile in the State with many EDs returning no specialist dairy farms at all.
At the other end of the farm economic output spectrum, above average (median) rates of specialist
sheep farming extend across the peninsulas with 28 per cent of EDs there falling into the 90th plus
percentile nationally (map 5). On the other hand, little to no specialist sheep farming is found in
north and east Kerry. Mixed grazing livestock farming (map 6) is also more characteristic of south
Kerry and the peninsulas where above average (median) rates predominate.
The other farming systems have more fragmented distributions. While specialist beef production
(map 7) is more common in the east of the county, and in the north to a lesser extent, there are
above-average rates around the Ring of Kerry also with peaks in Teeranearagh, south of
Cahersiveenwhere 54 of its 66 farms were specialist beef in 2010, as well as Valentia Island (42 out
of 59 farms). Above-average (median) rates of mixed field crops farming (map 8) are found
throughout the county, with the highest rates in Listowel and its hinterland.
Thus, the high values in average farm economic sizes noted earlier for north and central Kerry are
likely related to the high proportions of specialist dairy farming carried out in those areas, while the
low output of farming in SliabhLuachra and the peninsulas can be linked back to the low income
farming systems of specialist sheep farming, specialist beef farming and mixed livestock farming,
particularly around the Ring of Kerry.
Farming Intensity and Productivity
The next series of maps shows that EDs with the highest stocking densities (map 9), indicating more
intensive livestock farming, tend to also display the highest rates of productivity, both per hectare of
farmland (map 10) and per farm labour input (map 11). This is a useful indicator of the areas in Kerry
7
where commercial agriculture is more common, namely: north Kerry, central Kerry and the southern
Dingle peninsula between Dingle/Daingean Uí Chúisand Annascaul. This also reflects the geography
of specialist dairy farming seen earlier. Thus, the maps reveal the association between specialist
dairy farming and high input (stocking density) / high output (standard outputs) farming.
Elsewhere on the peninsulas, across south Kerry, and through east Kerry as far north as
SliabhLuachra are EDs with the lowest stocking densities; these areas of low input farming also
return the lowest rates of productivity per hectare and farm labour. This distribution mirrors those
of specialist sheep farming and mixed livestock farming (on the peninsulas and elsewhere in south
Kerry) and specialist beef farming (in east Kerry). The maps indicate the association between
drystock farming systems in particular and low input/low output farming.
Focus on Future of Marginal Farming Areas
The maps reveal that beyond the dairy farming areas, large extents of County Kerry are
characterised by low input/low output farming. In such marginal farming areas, low farm incomes
must be supplemented through either on-farm diversification or off-farm employment to avoid
dependence on the social welfare net, e.g., Farm Assist9. This makes farming a less attractive
proposition to potential farm successors, thereby weakening its future in those areas. What is
interesting to note is how marginal farming areas characterised by bog and scrublands tend to be
strongly associated with natural and/or cultural heritage. For example, the rugged and scenic
peninsulas have long been attractive to retirees and ex-urbanites as areas of ‘escape’ and traditional
cultures, characteristics that also underpin their tourist economies, while the SliabhLuachra region is
known for its traditional Irish music, song, dance and poetry. Whereas on the one hand, the limiting
nature of land in these areas has slowed modern development paths possible elsewhere in the
county thereby exacerbating local economic conditions (weakness), on the other hand it has
conserved more traditional elements of life that are increasingly appreciated by locals and visitors
alike (strength).
This results in a complex mix of limiting land resources that have posed a barrier to conventional
economic development combined with the outstanding natural and cultural heritage that persists
because of those limitations. It highlights the interdependency of the wider economy with the future
of farming in those areas either by supporting diversified farm enterprises or throughoffering
alternative job opportunities with which to combine low-income farming. It emphasises the need in
such farming areas of broader rural development strategies and enterprise supports that go beyond
the farm gate, especially via LEADER and Local Enterprise Offices. Continuing the community-led
local development approach that has proven so successful to date is essential. For example, this
approach works to encourage, harness and organise the volunteerism of rural community groups
that in turn subsidises local economic development with free labour, human capital (education and
skills) and social capital (networks), human resources that tend to characterise the often
cosmopolitan populations found in marginal farming areas. Such community groups play key roles in
rural economic development in the tourism, food and creative economies in particular, ones that
show complementarity with low input/output farming.
Ultimately, the future of farming will depend on the take-up of farming by young people.
Whilevalues are low, it is encouraging that above-average rates (median of 24 per cent) of farm
holders younger than 45 years of age are found in EDs throughout the county, including the
9
In-shore fishermen and low income smallholders in Kerry who are in receipt of long-term social welfare payments (or
their dependent spouse) are also eligible for income support by working in the Rural Social Scheme (RSS) that is managed
by Local Development Companies. The RSS provides beneficial services to rural communities from elder care supports,
environmental enhancement and community group administration to folklore and history projects.
8
peninsulas and SliabhLuachra, offering a positive signal for farming in Kerry into the future (map 12).
Above-average rates of farm diversification, indicated by map 13 of farms with gainful nonagricultural activity, are also found in these marginal farming areas highlighting how farm holders
are adapting and innovating in response to income challenges within the agricultural sector but the
national median remains low at just nine per cent. Therefore, there are positive signs in Kerry’s
marginal farming areas but a clear need for taking a broaderapproach to rural development even
when the aim is to sustain farming.
The maps reveal low rates of both younger farmers and diversification to support farm incomes
along much of the Ring of Kerry. This combination, together with the area’s low input/output
farming, warns of risks to the future of the farming landscape that is key to its tourism industry. It
lies in contrast to neighbouring Dingle peninsula where above-average rates of younger farmers and
farm diversification are common, and where some specialisation in dairy farming persists alongside
high rates of drystock farming and some mixed field crop production. The emergence of a strong offfarm artisan food and drink sector dotted around Dingle (e.g., Dingle Brewing Company, Dingle
Distillery, Dingle Peninsula Cheese, Greta’s Herbs, Murphy’s Ice Cream, Reel Dingle Fish, West Kerry
Brewery) is one factor that may help to explain the difference between the two peninsulas10. Nor is
this emergence independent of the diversified tourism sector that has been evolving in the Dingle
peninsula over recent decades around other contemporary tourist attractions fromoutdoor activities
(dolphin tours, surfing, the Dingle Way, cycling) to the creative economy (international and
traditional music – Other Voices, Dingle Rhythm Festival; crafts – Dingle Crystal, Brian de Staic Celtic
jewellry) and indigenous culture (Blasket Interpretive Centre)11.
Artisan food and drink are recognised as key tourism attractions in their own right. They contribute
to a unique place-based visitor experience where visitors literally eat the scenery (such as meat from
a Kerry cow or west Kerry lamb reared on native plants) and can enhance a region’s image both
nationally and overseas. Food experiences tend to be indoors and offer solutions to tourists during
inclement weather, giving a way of extending the tourist season. Synergies between farming
landscapes and heritage, artisan food, rural tourism and the creative economy as well as the marine
have been highlighted by CEDRA (Commission for the Economic Development of Rural Areas) and
recognised for their complementarities in realising untapped rural economic development potential.
Therefore, the fact that the Dingle peninsula still maintains a diverse farming system profile in a
rugged headland combined with its growing artisan food and drink sector, its strong tourism sector
and its long marine tradition highlights this part of Kerry as a case study area for suchintegrated rural
development. It also indicates an area of experienced and networked partners with whom Kerry
County Council, the LCDC, the local development company SKDP and other agenciescould work to
develop a local development strategy predicated on key themes of sustainable farming, artisan food
and drink, place-based rural tourism, the creative economy and the marine as well as indigenous
Gaelic culture. The area is of particular interest considering the strength of the CorcadhDhuibhne
Gaeltacht in terms of the number of Irish speakers, the option of second-level education through the
medium of Irish and its attraction for linguistic scholars, and for students of the Irish language and
Irish Studies.
10
A feature that attracts food tourists, scholars, practitioners and entrepreneurs e.g. from UCC’s Diploma in Speciality Food
Production.BlásnahÉireann, the Irish Food Awards and the largest national competition for quality Irish food produce, is
held in Dingle annually where it is hosted by the Dingle Food Festival.
11
Even the knowledge economy is represented with the establishment of a Sacred Heart University of Connecticut campus
in Dingle (An Díseart) as part of its Center for Irish Cultural Studies.
9
Conservation Areas – Land and Sea
Much of County Kerry is made up of protected lands and coastal waters (map 14) designated by the
National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) in accordance with national and European laws.In fact,
approximately half of its coastal waters, most of its uplands and all of its coastline are protected
areas under at least one designation (some under more than one). These classifications have
implications for landowners and workers engaged in natural resource utilisation at sea, on land and
in fresh waters in designated areas. Sectors particularly impacted are farming, forestry, fishing and
aquaculture (fish and seaweed) as designations curtail resource management practices and slow
down enterprise development, e.g., delays securing fish and seaweed aquaculture licenses,
restrictions on farming activities in SAC-designated farmland. Nevertheless, these conservation
listings highlight the value of so much of Kerry’s on- and off-shore natural heritage within an Irish
and a European context, andemphasise the importance of schemes such as GLAS12 to the Kerry
economy.
High nature value farmland characteristic of much of the low input/low output farming areas in
Kerry and its associated environmental quality offers opportunities for primary producers. At a local
level, South Kerry Development Partnership (SKDP - the local development company in south Kerry)
has used these features to support low-income smallholders in innovative ways. It has engaged with
farmers to explore opportunities for collective enterprises, which has borne fruit with such projects
as Ring of Kerry lamb using the high quality local environment as a unique selling point (USP)13. At a
European level, the Kerry LIFE Project is a collaboration between the Department of Arts, Heritage,
and the Gaeltacht, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Teagasc, Coillte and
SKDPwith a budget of over €5m14. The project involves working in partnership with farmers and
forest owners to manage the habitat of the freshwater pearl mussel in listed conservation areas
within their lands over an area of 2,500ha of farmland and 400ha of forest. It covers Special Areas of
Conservation (SACs) and proposed Natural Heritage Areas (pNHAs) in the Caragh and Blackwater
catchments of inland Iveragh and highlights how conservation listings can help remote rural areas to
secure large-scale international funding that remunerates prescribed land management practices by
its primary producers.
The continuation of low input/output farming is inexorably linked with conservation areas on
farmland because undesirable habitat and landscape changes could result from declining farm
numbers, undergrazing or overgrazing, and changes to traditional farming practices driven by
modern economic pressures or even agri-scientific advice. At sea, declining numbers of in-shore
fishermen and threats from large aquacultural developments could lead to a loss of traditional
seafaring heritage and undesirable water quality changes. Therefore, there is a clear public good
dimension to supporting small-scale, economically vulnerable farming and inshore fishing in County
Kerry.
Going beyond the public good dimension, conservation area designations present opportunities for
the wider economy too, particularly the tourist industry. Fáilte Ireland’s Port Survey of Overseas
Holidaymakers in 2013 found that beautiful scenery (88 per cent), a good range of natural
attractions (86 per cent) and a natural unspoilt environment (85 per cent) ranked in the top five of
important destination features among international visitors, while by far the most common activity
engaged in was hiking/hill walking15, typically through scenic farmland and commonages. Locally, the
12
GLAS stands for Green, Low-Carbon Agri-Environment Scheme that incentivises environmentally-sensitive farm
management plans. It replaces the Rural Environment Protection Scheme (REPS).
13
See http://www.ringofkerryqualitylamb.ie/
14
From ‘http://www.npws.ie/media/npws/publications/marine/FAQs.pdf’.
15
Fáilte Ireland (2014): Tourism Facts 2013. Accessed http://www.failteireland.ie/Research-Insights/TourismFacts-and-Figures.aspx, 21 May 2015.
10
30km proposed walking and cycling greenway along the old Glenbeigh to Cahersiveen railway line
that crosses the land of 120 landowners16 is designed to help attract cycling and walking tourists.
Nationally, the new Wild Atlantic Way (WAW),the world’s longest coastal travel route launched by
Tourism Ireland in 2014 along the west coast of Ireland, is being successfully marketed based on
such natural resources as high nature value farmland and unspoilt coasts, along with local artisanal
food and crafts, wild scenery, traditional heritage and rural communities. With almost 450km or
nearly one-fifth of the WAW running through County Kerry, this initiative is set to play a key role in
increasing tourism revenue in some the county’s more remote coastal areas. Already, the WAW has
had a positive effect on attracting international attention and tourists throughout the west of
Ireland’s coastline and has contributed to Lonely Planet’s listing of Ireland in the top ten places to
visit in 2015.
Thus, low input/output farming is an important player in creating and maintaining the landscapes
that underpin the tourist economy of County Kerry. And yet this vulnerable segment of the farm
sector, comprising some of the lowest earning farmers in the State, does not accrue income from
tourism unless they have the capital and/orinterest to pursue a diversified enterprise on their farm.
This flags a role for local authorities and Revenue together with the Department of Agriculture, Food
and the Marine, to explore ways to redirect some proportion of tourism earnings to GLAS farmers
who carry out the highest levels of desirable farm management practices to maintain a scenic
landscape, high conservation standards and traditional farming heritage (e.g. rare breeds)in order to
compensate for their resultant low farm incomes and sustain their enterprises. The same can be
explored for supporting in-shore fishers to continue their seasonal, low-income forms of low impact
fishing that harvests seafood integral to the tourist dining experience expected in coastal areas from
high-end dining to catch and cook collaborations between fishing charter operations and local
restaurants.
Kerry’s low income smallholders and small-scale inshore fishersface ongoing socio-economic
challenges. At the same time, there is growing public awareness of the long-term value of high
nature value farmland, high quality coastal waters, traditional farming and fishing heritage, and local
produce that these vulnerable primary production groups serve to maintain. With the rise of placebased tourism, there is also a greater understanding of the broader rural economic development
potential they offer in association with rural tourism and the creative economy in particular, all of
whichjustifies supporting and maintaining economically vulnerable farming and fishing in County
Kerry.
A Local Food Economy for County Kerry
High input/high output agriculture isshaped by national and international policies, particularly Pillar
1 of the CAP, and by the marketplace. While low input/low output farming is influenced by such
policies too, especially Pillar 2 of the CAP, there is potential for local government to help create the
conditions to support a vibrant rural economy, particularly key to low income farmers, but of benefit
to other farmers and rural dwellers generally.
One approach is to foster a local food economy that exists beyond the commercial commodity
markets. A local food economy is whereby a diverse range of produce is grown and reared for local
food-processing and for local consumption, and not simply for low-value, high-volume international
agricultural commodity markets over which Kerry farmers have little or no control. The need for a
local food economy to be diverse in its range of products calls for a territory-wide network of food
producers and processors. This in turn requires a diversity of skills ranging from land and aquatic
16
http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/green-light-for-kerry-cycle-route-312939.html, accessed 1 June 2015.
11
resource management with the focus on primary food and fish production, to manufacturing skills
and expertise in food processing and food safety regulations, to marketing and business skills in
promoting and selling the output through various supply channels. A local food economy depends
on those inside and outside the farm sector and entails strong rural-urban linkages. Key features that
distinguish such ‘local food’ are:
1. provenance – the origin of the food, the more local the better (authenticity, the producer
story, low food miles),
2. terroir – the contribution that a region’s distinctive landscape makes to the taste of food
produced there making it unique to that place (soil, farming practices and heritage), and
3. hospitality – sharing the positive food story through good customer service (the food
experience).
Local government and national agencies play a key role in developing and maintaining a local food
economy including supports for existing enterprises, incentives for new ones, and partnerships
withcomplementary sectors.Adding value to farm outputand local food can be achieved via:
1. synergies with tourism, e.g. food festivals, events, trails and experiences, and
throughhospitality sector procurement,
2. synergies with health, e.g. public procurement for hospitals,
3. synergies with education, e.g. public procurement for and knowledge-exchange with
primary, secondary and third-level institutions,
4. synergies with public services, e.g. market facilities, enterprise incubation units,and even
5. synergies with local authorities themselves, e.g. public procurement for canteens and
events.
While such supports could benefit all types and scales of farmers in Kerry, the primary focus to begin
with would be on low input/low output producers in marginal farming areas to help sustain this
important sector in disadvantaged areas of South Kerry and SliabhLuachra especially.
The existing artisan food and drink sector on the Dingle peninsula points to this area as a recognised
food tourism destination with a diverse farming, food processing and retail sector already in place.
The Dingle Peninsula Food & Drink Trail includes 45 local businesses all engaged in some aspect of
food production, harvesting, processing, retailing and cooking where the public can visit. The Iveragh
peninsula has a foundation on which to build the sector there around established brands from
Sneem black pudding andSkelligs Chocolate Factory to Ring of Kerry lamb, as well as fledgling
initiatives such as Cahersiveen butter.
Those working and volunteering in the artisan food and drink sector, from producers, processors,
distributors and retailers to chefs, market managers, event organisers, celebrities and community
groups, comprise essential collaborators with local government and national agencies. More
importantly, they include the food champions who will prove leaders in shaping and implementing a
sustainable strategy to develop a local food economy in County Kerry.
12
Appendix 1: Maps of farming indicators for County Kerry.
Map 1
13
Map 2
14
Map 3
15
Map 4
16
Map 5
17
Map 6
18
Map 7
19
Map 8
20
Map 9
21
Map 10
22
Map 11
23
Map 12
24
Map 13
25
Map 14
26